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THE 



GENERALS 



or THB 



LAST WAR ¥ITH GREAT BRITAIN. 



BY JOHN S. JENKINS, 

w 
40TUUR OF THE "HISTORY OP THE WAR BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES 
JlND MEXICO," ETC. ETC. 



"There are deeds which should not pass away, 
And names that must not wither." 



AUBURN: 
DERBY, MILLER & CO., PUBLISHERS, 

buffalo: G. II, DERBY <t CO. 

1819. 






^ -^ -"^^^ N-'*v^\y 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1848, by 
DERBY, MILLER & CO. 
In the Clerk's Office for the Northern DisUict of New York 

In exchanfrft 
MAR 2 9 1315 



•TEREOTYPED BY THOMAS B. SMITH, 
21(5 NVILU*M STRKKT, N. T. 



TO 

MAJOR GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR, 

OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY, 
THESE MEMOIRS, OF DISTINGUISHED SOLDIERS, 

WHOSE BRIGHT EXAMPLES HAVE BEEN 

WORTHILY EMULATED IN HIS OWN MILITARY CAREER, 

ARE MOST RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED. 



PREFACE. 



If authors -would only adopt the prayer of the honest- 
hearted Scotch pedlar, — " God send us a good conceit of our- 
selves !" — would they not soon get rid of what is, at best, a 
thankless task — that of writing prefaces ? Who, then, would 
care a fig for the Pubhc's whims or prejudices ? — the Public 
might be satisfied, or not, just as the Public pleased. A great 
many readers now regard prefaces with abhorrence, and 
lengthy ones are sure to be pronounced, in advance, 

" As tedious as a twice-told tale, 
Vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man." 

Still, there is no end to fault-finding, if an author does not 
put a window in the front of his book, — like that the old Roman 
wished in every man's breast ; and yet, the poor wight who 
thus pretends to gratify vulgar curiosity, racks and puzzles 
his brains in order to screen and curtain his window, so that 
nobody will be a whit the wiser, till the volume is opened, and 
the contents carefully examined. It is no wonder that few 
people like to read prefaces, — or that fewer still are satisfied, 
when they do read them ! 

I feel confident, however, that it would be a work of super- 
erogation, to offer any apology — for that is the gist of most 



VI PREFACE. 

prefaces — for the publication of these biographical sketches of 
distinguished generals, whose gallant deeds, whose bravery 
and heroism, are enshrined in the memories of the American 
people. My only fear is, that it may seem that other officers, 
equally entitled to consideration, have been intentionally over- 
looked, in making the selections for the work. That it was 
deemed necessary to make a selection at all, is the single ex- 
cuse that need be offered for the omission, — which, it is not 
impossible, may be hereafter supplied, by another volume. 

The Histories of Ramsay, Perkins, and Brackenridge, Chris- 
tie's Memoirs of the War in Canada, Thompson's Historical 
Sketches, James' Military Occurrences, Wilkinson's Memoirs, 
The British Annual Register, Tlie Historical Register, Arm- 
strong's Notices, the interesting, but desultory melange of Mr. 
IngersoU, the National Portrait Gallery, and numerous biog- 
raphies, more or less extensive, have been consulted in the 
preparation of the volume. There has been no attempt at 
fine writing, but great pains have been taken to render the no- 
tices full, comprehensive, and historically accurate ; and they 
are believed to be more entitled to confidence, in this respect, 
than any which have preceded them. 

Auburn, December 1, 1848. 



CONTENTS. 



Paob 

JACOB BROWN, 13 

Situation of the country at the commencement of the war \vitli 
Great Britain — Parentage of General Brown — Early Vicis- 
situdes — Teaches school — Commences tlie Study of the Law 
— Abandons his studies, and removes to Jefferson county, 
New York — Settlement at Brownville — Attack on Ogdens- 
burgh — Gallant conduct of General Brown — Oifered the com- 
mand of a regiment in the Regular Service — Declines it — 
Brave defence of Sacketts Harbor — Appointed a Brigadier 
General — Expedition down the St. Lawrence — Promoted to 
the rank of Major General — March to Buffalo — Invasion of 
Canada — Capture of Fort Erie — Battles of Chippewa and 
Niagara — Severely Wounded, and temporarily surrenders the 
command — Siege of Fort Erie — Successful Sortie — Close 
of the war — Appointed General-in-chief — His Death. 



EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES, 61 

The " Old Dominion" — Birth and Early History of Gaines — 
Receives his first commission as an ensign — Claim of the 
Spanish Government — Projects of Aaron Burr — His arrest 
and trial — Temporary retirement of Gaines from the army 
— ^Obtains a regiment — Abortive Expedition against Mon- 
treal — Made a Brigadier-general — Siege of Fort Erie — The 
Assault — Gallant defence of Gaines — Brcvetted a IM.njor- 
general — War willi the Seminoles — Tlie " Black Hawli War" 



TIU CONTENTS. 

Pas I 

— Outbreak in Florida — Tlie War witli Mexico — Patriotic 
conduct of General Gaines — Personal appearance and traits 
of character. 



WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 88 

His Popularity — Benjamin Harrison — Anecdote — Birth and 
Education of General Harrison — Enters the army — Ken- 
tuckee — Campaign under Wayne — ^Defeat of the North 
Western Indians — Fortunate incident — Is married — Civil 
career — Secretary under Governor St. Clair — Delegate to 
Congress — Improvement of the Land System — ^Appointed 
Governor of Indiana Territory — Important services — Fron- 
tier Life — Designs of Great Britain — Subornation of the 
Indian tribes — Attack on the Chesapeake — Speech of Har- 
rison — Council at Vincennes — Tecumseh — ^Indian Depreda- 
tions — Battle of Tippecanoe — Declaration of War against 
England — Patriotism of tlie citizens of tlie West — Harrison 
invested with a military command — Expedition of General 
Hopkins — Defence of Fort Harrison — Destruction of Indian 
Towns — Harrison appointed Brigadier-general — Disposi- 
tions for the Campaign — Difficulties and Embarassments — 
Masssacre at Frenchtown — Siege of Fort Meigs — Narrow 
Escape — Defence of Fort Stephenson — Perry's Victory — 
Pursuit of Proctor — Battle of the Thames — ^Fruits of the 
Victory — Letter to General Vincent — ^Demonstrations of 
Respect — His Gallantry — Resigns his commission — Senator 
in Congress — Minister to Colombia — Retires to Private Life 
— Elected President — Sudden Illness and Death — ^His char- 
acter. 

ANDREW JACKSON, 163 

Of Irish descent — English oppression — His Father Emigrates 
to America — Birth of Andrew Jackson — Youthful Adven- 
tures — War of the Revolution — Invasion of Soutli Carolina 
— Patriotic conduct of young Jackson and his brothers — 
Anecdotes — Ills Daring and Resolution — Attack on the. 
Waxlwxw R«ttl«rs — Tak«» sa a pri-en^v to Cam«l«n — Si*f- 



CONTENTS. IX 

Faob 

ferings of the Prisoners — Battle of llolikirk's Hill — A Moth- 
er's Devotion — Release from Captivity — Close of the War 
— Praiseworthy Resolution — Andrew Jackson studies law — 
Emijrrates to Tennessee — Life in the Loff Cabin — Incidents 
of the Wilderness — Establishes himself at Nashville — The 
Debtors — Married to Rachael Donelson — Member of the 
Tennessee Convention — Representative and Senator in Con- 
gress — Judge of the Supreme Court — Ditticulty with Gov- 
ernor Sevier — Duel with Dickinson — Altercation with Col- 
onel Benton — Aaron Burr — War with Great Britain — Jack- 
son tenders the services of his Division — Expedition to 
Natchez — The Southern Indians — War with the Creeks — 
General Jiickson takes the field at the head of the Tennes- 
see volunteers and militia — Difficulty in obtaining supplies 
— Battle of Talluschatchee — Lincoyer — Battle of Talladega 
— Destitution of the Troops — Mutiny — Firmness and deter- 
mination of General Jackson — Patriotic letter to Governor 
Blount — Battles of Emuckfaw and Enotochopco — Arrival 
of Reinforcements — Battle of Tohopeka — Terrible slaughter 
of the Creeks — Termination of Hostilities — Return Home — 
Jackson appointed a IMajor-general in the Regular Army — 
Capture of Pensacola — Expedition of the British against 
New Orleans — Defences of the city — Arrival of Jackson — 
Landing of the Enemy — General Jackson attacks them with 
a part of his command — Fortifications — Battle of the Eighth 
of January — Complete Rout of the British Army — The en- 
emy retire to their Shipping — Treaty of Peace — Fine im- 
posed by Judge Hall — Gratitude of the citizens of New 
Orleans — The Seminole War — Appointed commissioner to 
receive the Territory of Florida — Resignation of his com- 
mission — Again elected Senator — Chosen President — Im- 
portant Events of his Administration — Final Retirement — 
Death and character. 



ALEXANDER MACOMB, 295 

Military Institution at West Point — Ancestors of General 
IMacomb — His Youth — Education — Enters the army as « 

1* 



M CONTENTS. 

Pxas 

Cornet of Dragoons — ^IMilitary Education and Accomplish- 
ments — Promotions — Marriage — Superintends the Construc- 
tion of Coast Defences — Prepares a work on Courts Martial 
— Appointed Colonel of Artillery — Raises a Regiment — 
Stationed at Sacketts Harbor — Projected Attack on Kings- 
ton — Participation in the Capture of Fort George — Expedi- 
tion under Wilkinson — Promoted to Brigadier-general — At- 
tack on La Cole Mill — Invasion of New York by the British 
under Sir George Prevost — Skirmishing — Battle of Platts- 
burg — Attack and Repulse of the Enemy — Victory of Com- 
modore Macdonough — Thanks of Congress and State Leg- 
islatures — Macomb appointed Chief Engineer — General-in- 
chief of the Army — His Death. 

ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE, 323 

His family and Education — ^Receives a Commission — Fond- 
ness for reading and study — His Marriage — E.xpedition to 
the sources of the Mississippi — Ordered to explore the in- 
terior of Louisiana — Hardships and Suflerings of his party 
— Loses his way — Taken prisoner to Santa Fc and Chihua- 
hua — Permitted to Return Home — Publishes Nan-atives of 
his Expeditions — Rapid Promotions — Deputy Quarter Mas- 
ter General — Appointed Colonel of Infantry — Mode of drill- 
ing his regiment — Incursion into Canada — Raised to the 
rank of Brigadier General — Expedition against York — His 
Gallant Conduct — Explosion of the Magazine — ^Death of 
Pike — Bravery and Heroism. 

WINFIELD SCOTT, 338 

Napoleon's Remark in regard to Turenne — The Pretender — 
Scott's Ancestors — His birth — Education — Enters the lethal 
Profession — Commences Practice — ^Obtains a commission as 
captain of Artillery — Difficulty with General Wilkinson — 
Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel— Attack on Queenston — 
Scott crosses the river and takes the command — The Enemy 
driven off— Arrival of General Shealfe with reinforcements, 
and surrender of the Americans — Encounter with the Indian 



CONTENTS. XI 

Paqb 

Warriors — Interference in behalf of Irish prisoners — Is ex- 
changed and returns to duty — Colonel of the second artil- 
lery — Attack on Fort George — Scott commands the ad- 
vanced guard — Capture of the Fort — Wilkinson's Expedi- 
tion — Skirmishing — Appointed a brigadier general — Camp 
of Instruction at Butfalo — Invasion of Canada — Battle of 
Chippewa — Scott's cliarge — Battle of Niagara — His heroic 
conduct — Is severely wounded — Complimentary Resolu- 
tions — ^\^isit to Europe — Return Home and Marriage — ^j\Iil- 
itary Reports and Publications — Controversy in regard to 
brevet rank — War with the Sacs and Foxes — Campaign in 
Florida — Disturbances in Canada, and on the frontier — Re- 
moval of the Cherokees — The North Eastern Boundary — 
Raised to the chief command of the Army — The War with 
Mexico — Expedition against Vera Cruz — Reduction of the 
city and the castle of San Juan de Ulua — Battle of Cerro 
Gordo — ^larch to Puel)la — Advance to the Mexican Capital 
— Contreras and Churubuseo — El Molino del Rey — Capture 
of the City of Mexico — Treaty of Peace concluded — Return 
of General Scott — Reflections. 




JACOB BROWN. 
The first General in Chief. 



THE GENERALS 



OP THE 



LAST WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN, 



JACOB BROWN. 

The opening scenes of the second, and last contest, 
between the United States and Great Britain, were, 
to the former, disastrous in the extreme. The appre- 
hension long entertained, and, in the western part of 
the Union, the openly avowed desire of a war witli 
Spain, who took little pains to conceal her dissatisfac- 
tion with the cession of Louisiana, — and the protracted 
agitation of the various questions in dispute with Eng- 
land and France ; the two great powers contending for 
the mastery, or, at least, the commercial supremacy 
in the world, — had aroused, in some degree, the patri- 
otic emotions of our countrymen. The impressment 
of American seamen, the outrage on the Chesapeake, 
the affau- of the Little Belt, and the acts of violence 
committed by the savages on the north-western fron- 
tier, — who were prompted and encouraged by the 
agents of the British government, — had also excited a 
war-spirit that needed but a breath to fan it into a 
flame. Volunteer companies for improvement in ^s- 
cipline, were everywhere formed ; the regular military 



14 JACOB BROWN. 

force of the nation was augmented ; and our chivalrio 
young men sought eagerly for commissions in the 
army. 

But the declaration of war, on the 18th of June, 
1812,' found the country almost entirely unprepared 
fur hostilities. — Upon whomsoever the blame may fall, 
the fact is too glaring to admit of contradiction ; 
and its consequences, at the outset, were signally 
unfortunate. — The long line of sea-coast was in a 
defenceless condition. The army was feeble in num- 
bers, and feebler still in skill and experience. The 
prominent officers of the Revolution were either dead 
or superannuated, and recourse was had to those who 
had held subordinate positions in that great struggle, 
under what proved to be the mistaken notion, that 
they only could be relied on in such an emergency. 
One reverse followed closely after another ; and it was 
not until a different policy prevailed, and younger, 
and more skilful and enterprising officers, were placed 
at the head of the brave yeomen who flocked around 
the American standard, that the tide of defeat was 
turned. Among those who contributed to retrieve the 
disasters of 1812 and 1813, and to terminate the war 
by a series of brilliant achievements that elicited the 
applause of the nation, and enforced admiration at 
home and abroad, was Major General Jacob Browx. 

General Brown was born in Bucks county, Penn- 
sylvania, on the ninth of March, 1775. His ancestors, 
for several generations, followed the ])eaceful occupa- 
tions of an agi-icultural life. George Brown, the first 
of tlie family in this country, emigrated from England 
previous to the estabUshment of William Penn on the 



EARLY VICISSITUDES. 15 

Delaware, and was well known as a man of strong and 
well-informed mind. His descendants resembled him 
in character, and a number of them were, for many- 
successive years, prominent and influential members 
of the provincial government. With few exceptions, 
they belonged to the Society of Friends. The early 
associations, therefore, of General Brown, were not 
calculated to awaken a desire for enfraafin^ in those 
warlike pursuits, in which he subsequently acquired so 
much distinction.* 

In the language of the inscription on the monument 
erected to his memory, in the Congressional Cemetery, 
at Washington, he was "by birth, by education, by 
principle, devoted to peace!" But the fire of patriot- 
ism often burns the purest and the freest beneath the 
plainest garb ; and the heart warmed by the manly 
and generous impulses which it quickens into exist- 
ence, is easily moved by the incentives that arouse the 
soldier's ambition. Love of country, where it is honest 
and sincere, will outweigh a thousand cold and selfish 
considerations, and to him who cherishes it, in the 
hour of danger, there is no post so acceptable as that 
which will secure the protection of the. land that gave 
him birth. 

Samuel Brown, the father of Jacob, was a man of 
intellisrence and hi^h character. He was liberal and 
enterprising, though not always successful in his 
undertaking's. He inherited a large and unincum- 

* General Brown is frequently compared with General Greene, who, 
like him, was descended from a Quaker family ; and it has been jocu- 
larly said of them, that, although one was green, and the other brown, 
both were true blue ! 



16 JACOB BROWN. 

bered estate, which, with proper care and attention, 
yielded a very respectable income ; but, unfortunately, 
he was not content with the moderate gains thus 
realized, and, with the hope of increasing them, was 
induced to embark in commercial enterprises that 
wholly failed of success. A total sacrifice of property 
Avas the consequence ; and his children were left to 
depend upon their own efforts and exertions to make 
their way in the world. 

At the time of his father's failure, our hero was 
about sixteen years of age ; but, though still a mere 
vouth, he was not unjirepared for practising that self- 
reliance which had now become a necessity as well as 
a duty. So far from being dispirited, because he was 
compelled to rely upon liis own unaided resources, he 
nerved himself manfully for the task before him, deter- 
mined, if possible, to secure the rewards of honest and 
industrious enterprise. The evil consequences of a 
hasty and unwise act were brought home to him in 
such a manner, that he could not well forget them ; 
and thus it was in after years, that caution and pru- 
dence were such conspicuous features in his disposi- 
tion. When he arrived at the age of eighteen, he 
commenced teaching school at Crosswicks, New Jer- 
sey, and remained there in that capacity, till he was 
twenty-one. Wiiile engaged in this vocation, — in 
itself a noble school, and one that has served as the 
introduction to a brilliant career of usefulness, to so 
many of our most distinguished citizens, — he devoted 
all his leisure time, witli great assiduity, to the culti- 
vation of his mind. 

After leaving Crosswicks, ho spent two years in 



TEACHES SCHOOL. 



17 



Ohio, in the vicinity of Cincinnati, during which 
time he was employed in surveying and laying out the 
public lands. On his return from the west, he went 
to the city of Ne^v York, and, upon the urgent solici- 
tation of his friends, taught a public school for a few 
months. This was in the year 1798 — a most excit- 
ing period in the history of the country. The depre- 
dations committed on the commerce of the United 
States, the insults offered to our ministers by the 
French Directory, and the arrogant tone of their En- 
voy and his agents, threatened seriously to disturb the 
friendly relations which had formerly existed between 
the two governments. 

The political discussions of that day were animated 
and earnest in their tone, and there were few possess- 
ing the cajmcity who did not engage in them. Young 
Brown had constantly kept in view the importance of 
disciplining and strengthening his mental powers, and 
the magnitude of the questions, in relation to which 
parties were then divided, was such, that he devoted a 
considerable portion of his time to their examination. 
He was an active participant in the debates which 
took place among his associates, and wrote several es- 
says, that were published in the city papers, and at- 
tracted the favorable attention of that portion of his 
fellow-citizens whose views coincided with those of the 
MTiter. While he remained in New York, he com- 
menced the study of the law, but, on discovering that 
it was not congenial with his disposition or tastes, he 
immediately abandoned it. These repeated changes in 
his occupation were not caused by any indecision, or 
want of energy on his part, but rather by the omission 



18 JACOB BROWN. 

to seek a iiclJ where his active and ardent tempera- 
ment would have the opportunity to develop itself, and 
his love of adventure find those projects better adapted 
to its gratification. 

In 1799, he purchased, at a low price, a large tract 
of land on the borders of Lake Ontario, lying between 
the Black river and the St. Lawrence, and embraced 
within the limits of the present county of Jefferson. 
As soon as his arrangements were completed, he re- 
moved thither, for the jjurpose of establishing himself 
and effecting a settlement. At this time the country 
was rude and uncultivated, and the first human habi- 
tation within thirty miles of the lake was erected by 
him. The settlement that he founded, now a large 
and flourishing village, was called Brownville, and the 
same name was afterwards applied to the town in 
which it was located. Both the village and town, and 
the county of Jefierson, are much indebted to him for 
their prosperity and wealth. His activity and enter- 
prise were rewarded by pecuniary advancement ; and 
his kindly disposition, his integrity and intelligence, 
secured him a large share of popularity. He was ap- 
pointed to fill various public situations, and acquired 
an extensive influence in his own immediate vicinity, 
and in the state at large. He was distinguished as an 
enlightened and practical agriculturist, and for the 
ability and energy with which he prosecuted such 
measures as were most likely to improve the appear- 
ance and condition of the country. But these were 
not the only commendable traits that deserve to be 
mentioned. After he had effected the necessary im- 
provements, ho brought his parents to his home in the 



SETTLEMENT AT BROWN VILLE. 19 

wilderness, and having placed them in a comfortable 
sitaation near him, to the end of his life did every 
thing in his power to promote their happiness. 

Though occasionally meeting with reverses and 
disappointments, his firmness and perseverance never 
deserted him, and his unconquerable resolution enabled 
him to overcome every obstacle that interfered with the ' 
success of his plans. 

In 1809, he received the appointment of colonel in 
the state militia, and, in the following year, was pro- 
moted to the rank of brigadier general. He had ever 
been fond of perusing works on military science, and 
the certain prospect of a war with Great Britain now 
made him the more anxious to prepare himself for the 
proper discharge of those duties which he might be re- 
quired to perform, as it was a favorite wish with him, 
to acquit himself creditably in every position he was 
called upon to fill. At the commencement of hostil- 
ities, in the summer of 1812, he was placed in com- 
mand of a brigade in the first detachment of New 
York militia mustered into the service of the United 
States, and the defence of the eastern frontier of Lake 
Ontario, and the southern shore of the St. Lawrence, 
was intrusted to him. 

The line under the charge of General Brown ex- 
tended from Oswego to Lake St. Francis, a distance 
of nearly two hundred miles ; and throughout the 
greater portion of its extent, it was but thinly inhab- 
ited. The exposed situation of the country, on account 
of its proximity to the Canadian provinces, rendered 
the duty assigned him as responsible as it was ardu- 
ous ; and the small force under his command, and the 



20 JACOB BROWN. 

inadequate supply of means at his disposal, frequently 
occasioned vexation and embarrassment. Owing to 
the repeal of the orders in council, and the temporary 
armistice entered into between Sir George Prevost, 
Governor General of Canada, and Major General 
Dearborn, the Commander-in-chief of the American 
forces, it was late in the season before any action of 
importance took place on the northern frontier of New 
York. Both the resfular and the militia officers were 
constantly employed, in the meantime, in organizing 
and disciplining their respective commands. 

After completing the organization of his brigade, 
General Brown fixed his head-quarters at Ogdens- 
burgh. On the twenty-first of September, 1812, Cap- 
tain Forsyth, the immediate commander of the regular 
troops at that post, was directed to cross the St. Law- 
rence, with a small party, in pursuit of some prisoners 
whom the English had taken from that vicinity. He 
was met by a superior force of the enemy, whom he 
defeated. He then entered the village of Gananoque, 
and destroyed and brought oft* a large quantity of mil- 
itary stores, together with some prisoners. 

In retaliation for this successful exploit, the British 
commenced a heavy cannonade upon Ogdensburgh, on 
the second of October, from their batteries at Prescott, 
on the opposite side of the river. This was continued 
for two days in succession, and on Sunday, the fourth 
of October, they attempted to storm the town. For 
this purpose, about six hundred men were embarked 
in forty boats. General Brown had anticipated the 
attack, and collected together a force not far from four 
hundi-ed strong to resist it. As the enemy approached 



THE BRITISH ATTACK OGDENSBURGH. 21 

the shore, he ordered his troops, whom he had advan- 
tageously posted along the bank, to fire upon them. 
The command was obeyed with alacrity, and a spir- 
ited contest was kept up for two hours. The British 
made several ineffectual attempts to land ; but the 
galling fire poured upon them was too severe to be en- 
dured. Deceived and disappomted in regard to the 
firmness of the militia, and the spirit and energy of the 
officer who commanded them, they were at length 
compelled to retire across the river to Prescott, having 
lost a number of men, and leaving one of their boats 
in the hands of the Americans. 

Frequent collisions occurred between small parties 
of the two armies, in this quarter, during the autumn, 
and the following winter. Early in February, 1813, 
a body of the enemy crossed the St. Lawi-ence in pur- 
suit of some deserters, and committed a number of 
wanton and unprovoked outrages. Major Forsyth, 
then in command at Ogdensburgh, determined, as the 
only mode of obtaining satisfaction, to make an incur- 
sion into Canada. Passing over the river with a part 
of his riflemen, and a number of militia, many of the 
latter beinsf volunteers for the occasion, in all about two 
hundred men, he surprised the guard at Brockville, 
captured the military stores, and returned in safety, 
without the loss of a single man, bringing with him 
fifty-two prisoners, among whom were eight officers. 

In return for this second aftront, the British at- 
tacked Ogdensburgh in force, being near twelve hun- 
dred strong, under Colonel Frazier, on the twenty- 
second of February. JNIajor Forsyth, in connection 
with Colonel Benedict, of the New York militia, made 



22 JACOB BROWrC. 

a gallant defence ; but they were finally forced to fall 
back into the interior, before the superior numbers of 
the enemy. The latter destroyed two schooners, two 
gunboats, and the soldiers' barracks, and then retired 
across the river. In consequence of this event, seri- 
ous apprehensions were entertained for the safety of 
Sacketts Harbor, which had been selected as the prin- 
cipal naval and military depot on the lake frontier, on 
account of the excellence of its harbor, and prompt 
measures were taken for its security ; — bat the British 
made no further attempts at invasion, during the win- 
tor. 

The term for which he was called into service hav- 
ing expired soon after the close of the campaign of 
1812, General Brown returned to his civil pursuits at 
Brownville. But the bravery and skill which he had 
manifested in repelling the attack on Ogdensburgh, 
had attracted the favorable notice of the national ad- 
ministration, and they were unwilling to be even tem- 
porarily deprived of his valuable services. Accord- 
ingly, the command of a regiment in the regular army 
was tendered to him. — At the opening of hostilities, 
extensive preparations had been made, and orders had 
been issued, for tlie invasion of Canada ; and it was 
confidently predicted that the campaign would be sig- 
nalized by the conquest of the two provinces. The 
surrender of General Hull, the failure of the at- 
tempted invasion under General Van Rensselaer, and 
the inaction of General Dearborn, put an end to the 
brilliant hopes and expectations that had been formed, 
and created a very general feeling of dissatisfaction in 
regard to the manner in which the war had been car- 



IS TENDERED A REGIMENT. 23 

ried on, and the conduct of many of the principal offi- 
cers of the army. As was quite natural, General 
Brown shared in this feeling, and was unwilling to 
enter the regular service if required to submit to a 
sacrifice of rank. He therefore declined the appoint- 
ment ; but, at the same time, acknowledging the duty 
of every good citizen to aid in the defence of the 
country, he held himself in readiness to bestow his 
services, voluntarily and gratuitously, in case they 
should be needed in any emergency. 

In the spring of 1813, the American fleet and land 
troops were withdrawn from Sacketts Harbor, to co- 
operate in the reduction of York and Fort George at 
the upper end of Lake Ontario. Lieutenant Colonel 
Backus, of the 1st dragoons, was afterwards placed in 
command of the post, whose garrison consisted of two 
hundred and fifty dragoons, Lieutenant Fanning's ar- 
tillery, two hundred invalid soldiers, and a few sea- 
men. This was but a feeble force for the defence of 
the important military stores collected at that point, 
and especially so, because the batteries on the shore, 
and the vessels of war that were left behind, had been 
dismantled of nearly all their heavy ordnance. The 
commanding officer was active and vigilant, however, 
and he had been instructed to communicate with Gen- 
eral Brown, who resided within eight miles of the 
Harbor, if an attack should be threatened. The lat- 
ter was not then in military command, but he was 
relied on to rally the militia from the surrounding 
country, if it became necessary. Signal guns were 
directed to be fired, on the approach of a hostile force, 
in order to give the alarm with the least possible delay, 



24 JACOB BROWN. 

and such other preparations were made as were sup- 
posed to be requisite. 

On the evening of the twenty-seventh of May, the 
British fleet from Kingston was discovered bearing in 
the direction of Sacketts Harbor, by the small vessels 
under Lieutenant Chaunoey, who had been sent out 
to recomioitre. The alarm guns were instantly fired, 
and a messenger was also dispatched to General Brown 
with the information. After issuing orders for the 
militia to assemble, he repaired to the post of danger. 
The delay experienced by the enemy, in the attempt, 
but partially successful, to capture a number of boats 
coming from Oswego with troops, fortunately gave 
time to collect some five or six hundred men : but not 
more than one thousand could be assembled, in all, 
including the invalids. At the request of Lieutenant 
Colonel Backus, who had been but a short time at the 
station, and was unacquainted with the localities, 
General Brown took command of the united force. 

In the afternoon of the twenty-eighth, the hostile 
fleet, which consisted of four ships, one brig, two 
schooners, two gunboats, and thirty-three flat-bottomed 
boats, containing one thousand picked troops, under 
Sir George Prevost and Commodore Sir James Yeo, 
appeared in the offing. Under the orders of General 
Brown, a breastwork was hastily, but skilfully thrown 
up, at the only point where a landing could be readily 
eflectcd, — the primeval forests sweeping away, for 
miles on miles, in rear, of the town, and on either 
side of the opening leading down to the margin of the 
lake. The militia, and the Albany volunteers, under 
Colonel Mills, who had recently arrived, were posted 



ATTACK ON SACKETTS HARBOR. 25 

behind the breastwork with a field-piece. The regular 
troops, under Lieutenant Colonel Backus, were sta- 
tioned in a second line, i;i rear, and near the barracks 
and public buildings. Lieutenant Fanning, with his 
artillerists, occupied Fort Tompkins, at the barracks ; 
and Lieutenant Chauncey and his men were ordered 
to defend the stores at Navy Point. 

During the night of the twenty-eighth, General 
Brown was constantly on the alert. His men slept on 
their arms, while ho and his officers reconnoitred the 
shores of the lake. All was quiet, however, save the 
mournful sighing of the breeze among the dark pines 
and hemlocks, the tall oaks and maples, in the neigh- 
boring forests, and the constant dashing of the tiny 
waves on the pebbly beach, till the early dawn on the 
following morning. The British were then descried 
pushing rapidly towards the landing in their small 
boats. As they approached, the American militia ap- 
peared cheerful and animated, and betrayed no symp- 
toms of fear ; on the contrary, they seemed anxious to 
participate in the conflict. 

The orders of General Brown were, to permit the 
enemy to come within pistol shot, and then, taking 
deliberate aim, to open on them vigorously with the 
field-piece and musketry. The fii-st fire was well-di- 
rected, and very destructive ; the shot tearing and 
crashing through the sides of the boats, knocking off 
the gunwales, splintering the bowls of the oars, and 
killing and wounding several officers and men. Tho 
British were thrown into confusion ; their advance was 
cheeked ; and a few more rounds would undoubtedly 
have terminated the engagement. But after firing the 



26 JACOB BRO\V?r. » 

second round, tlic militia, for the first time in action, 
were seized with a sudden panic, and, in spite of tlie 
efforts of their officers, retreated in disorder. Colonel 
Mills lost his life in the vain attempt to prevent the 
retreat. General Brown succeeded in rallying about 
ninety men belonging to the company of Captain 
IMcNitt, whom he formed in line Vvdth the regulars, 
who maintained their position with spirit and bravery. 

Meanwhile Sir George Prevost had disembarked his 
troops on the beach, and commenced his march towards 
the village. But the enemy nov/ encountered the most 
desperate opposition from the little band of Americans 
who remained firm, encouraged by the presence of 
General Brown, and the heroic example of the brave 
but unfortunate Backus, who fell mortally wounded 
during the attack. Though compelled to give way 
before superior numbers, they disputed every inch of 
ground, and finally took possession of the barrack 
buildings. Here, partially sheltered, they poured their 
galling volleys on the enemy ; at the same time, Lieu- 
tenant Fanning, though severely wounded, directed 
the fire of his gun vrith remarkable precision and ef- 
fect. 

The British having made repeated efforts to dislodge 
the Americans, vv'ithout success, General Brown ex- 
horted his men to continue the defence of the position 
to the last extremity, vfhile he made another effort to 
rally the militia to their assistance. He then hastened 
to overtake the fugitives. Having collected a large 
number of them together, he earnestly addressed them, 
rebuking both officers and men for their lack of cour- 
age, with such force and eloquence, that many of them 



ATTACK ON SACKETTS llARfiOR. 27 

shed tears when he alluded to the brave conduct of the 
resrulars and volunteers, who, tliouirh stranf^ers to the 
soil, Vv^ere more prompt to defend it, than tlicy, its 
owners and occupants. He now ordered them to form 
and follow him, declaring that he would punish the 
first act of disobedience with instant death. Although 
his orders were obeyed without reluctance, he was 
afraid to rely upon their firmness in an open attack. 

Being unwilling, therefore, to meet the enemy with 
the troops whom he had just rallied. General Brown 
determined to efl'ect by stratagem what he was fearful 
he could not otherwise accomplish. Directing the 
militia to pass through the edge of the forest, in sight 
of the field of battle, as if affecting to conceal the 
movement, he marched them by a circuitous route 
towards the place of landing. The British, suspecting 
an attempt to turn their flank and capture their boats, 
became alarmed, and made a precipitate retreat, 
leaving behind them all their killed, a number of 
their wounded, and thirty-five prisoners. They 
were suffered to re-embark without serious molesta- 
tion, though a dropping fire was kept up till they 
were out of reach. After retiring to his shipping. Sir 
George Prevost demanded the surrender of the town, 
which was promptly refused. All danger had now 
passed, as reinforcements were rapidly coming in, and 
the British commander subsequently modified his 
demand into a request that his killed and wounded 
might be properly cared for, and then returned, quite 
crest-fallen, to the Canada shore. 

While the action was at its height, a false report 
reached Lieutenant Chauncey, to the effect that the 



29 JACOB BROWN. 

American trooi)s had been defeated, and were about to 
surrender ; whereupon, in compliance with his orders, 
he set fire to the stores and shipping, to prevent their 
falling into the hands of the enemy. The flames were 
afterwards .extinguished, but not until more damage 
had been done than had been effected by the British 
soldiery. The loss of the enemy in this alfair was 
very severe ; their total of ]i;illed, wounded, and taken 
prisoners, being about four hundred and fifty. The 
Americans lost tvv^enty-tAvo killed, eighty-four wounded, 
and twenty-six missing. 

The gallant defence of Sacketts Harbor laid the 
foundation of the military fame of General Brown. 
As a reward for the tact, courage, and promptitude, 
which he had exhibited, he Avas appointed, in the en- 
suing m.onth of August, a brigadier general in the 
regular army. In this capacity he accompanied Gen- 
eral Wilkinson, who had been appointed to succeed 
General Dearborn, in his unsuccessful expedition 
down the St. Lawrence. General Brown was sent 
forward to take command of the advance, at French 
Creek, which had lieen fixed upon as the place of ren- 
dovous for the various detachments composing the 
Army of the Centre. On the first, and again on the 
second of November, a British Squadron, with a largo 
force of infantry, attacked the troops who had already 
arrived tliere ; but, on each occasion, they were re- 
pulsed by the fire of a battery of three 18-pounders, 
skilfully managed by Captains McPherson and Fan- 
ning. After many delays. General Wilkinson em- 
barked from French Creek with his whole force, 
amounting to near seven thousand men, on the sixth 



EXPEDITION DOWN THE ST. LAWRENCE. 29 

of November, General Brown being placed in com- 
mand of the second brigade. In the evening they ar- 
rived a few miles above the British batteries at Pres- 
cott. The main body of the army, carrying with them 
their powder and fixed ammunition, now landed, and 
moved round to a point on the river below the enemy's 
batteries. 

The commander-in-chief, taking advantage of a 
dense fog which came on early in the night, endeav- 
ored to pass down the stream, in his boat, unobserveJ ; 
but the fog rising before he had effected the passage, 
the enemy discovered him, by the light of the moon, 
and o])ened their fire. General Brown was in the rear, 
in charge of the flotilla, consisting of three hundred 
boats ; and, upon discovering that the British were on 
the alert, he concluded to halt till the moon had set. 
He then gave orders for the flotilla again to get under 
way. The movement was discovered, however, and 
for three hours the American flotilla was exposed to a 
heavy fire from the guns of tlio enemy ; yet such was 
tlie foresight and vigilance of General Brown, that not 
a single boat suffered the slightest injury, and but one 
man was killed. 

On the seventh, the army continued its progress 
down the river, preceded by an advanced corps of 
twelve hundred men, under Colonel Macomb, M'ho 
were ordered to remove the obstructions in the stream, 
and drive the light parties of the enemy occupying the 
commanding points on its northern ban!c. The flotilla 
arrived at the White House on the eighth of November, 
and General Brown was then ordered forward with 
his brigade, to reinforce Colonel IMacomb and take 



30 JACOB BROWN. 

command of the advance. Clearing the bank of the 
river as he proceeded, he arrived on the ninth instant, 
at the head of the Longue Sault, without the occur- 
rence of any incident of unusual moment. In the 
morninsf of the tenth he continued his march, and soon 
became engaged with a strong party posted at a block- 
house near the rapids, who were handsomely driven 
otr by the rifles under Major Forsyth. 

In the meantime the British troops from Kingston 
had made their appearance in the rear of the Ameri- 
can army, and several skirmishes had taken place. 
While General Brown was still separated from the 
main body. General Boyd was ordered by the com- 
manding general, to face about and attack the enemy, 
witli the remaining troops on shore. An action was 
consequently hazarded on the eleventh of November, 
in Chrystler's fields near Williamsburg, which termi- 
nated in no decisive result ; the British retiring to their 
encampments, and the Americans to tlieir boats, each 
with the loss of over four hundred men. Without 
being further molested by the enemy. General Wil- 
kinson continued the descent of the river to St. Regis, 
at which point he expected to be joined by General 
Hampton, with the Army of the North. Owing to 
the want of harmony and concert of action between 
the two generals, a junction was not effected ; the re- 
duction of Montreal, — understood to have been the 
object of the expedition, — was abandoned ; and, on the 
tliirteenth of November, General Wilkinson retired 
into winter quarters at French jMills, now Fort Cov- 
ington, in the forks of the Salmon river. 

The capture of York and Fort George, and the sue- 



APPOINTED A MAJOR GE.VERAL. 31 

cessfnl operations of the North-western army in tho 
early part of the season, had raised the public expecta- 
tion to the highest pitch. Every thing was hoped from 
the expedition under General Wilkinson, for which ex- 
tensive preparations had been made. The Secretary 
of AVar, General Armstrong, in person superintended 
the moveraoint^ yet it was attended with complete fail- 
ure. The feeling of dissatisfaction thereby engendered, 
v/as not confined to the rank and jEile of the army, but 
extended throughout the nation. The expedition had 
attracted a more than ordinary degree of attention ; 
and, although the censures of the public were mainly 
confined to those who were alone responsible for its un- 
fortunate issue, all connected with it, both officers and 
soldiers, felt themselves, to a greater or less extent, the 
objects of reproach. The tendency of this feeling was 
to produce disaffection, even where it did not already 
exist ; to discourage tlie troops ; and to impair, if not 
to destroy, their efficiency. 

Soon after the retirement of the army into winter 
quarters, the command devolved on General Brown, in 
consequence of the sickness of General Wilkinson, 
and the absence of the other senior officers. Early in 
the year 1814, he was promoted to the rank of major 
general, and, in connection with the able and efficient 
officers under his orders, immediately applied himself 
to the work of reviving and perfecting the diseiplina 
of the troops, and restoring their esprit du corps. 

The brilliant achievements of the heroic soldiers wlio 
rallied around the eagle sta'ndard of Napoleon, and fol- 
lowed it, reckless of danger and peril, to battle and to 
death, had awakened impulses that prompted to like 



32 JACOB BROAVN. 

acts of daring ; and it only required, among the Amer- 
ican troops, the presence of a gallant and chivalrous 
commander to inspire that enthusiasm, and enkindle 
that patriotic ardor, which were sure to accomplish the 
same results. General Brown was a soldier by na- 
ture. His devotion to his profession assumed the 
character of a romantic attachment. Foremost in 
every thought, was a desire to redeem the honor of 
the flag that waved above him, and to achieve some- 
thing worthy to be recorded, side by side, with the 
storied annals of the Revolution. His less fortunate 
contemporary, " whose glorious name might turn a 
coward brave" — the accomplished Ney — though the 
loader of mightier armies, and the hero of prouder 
fields, was neither more brave, nor more highly gifted 
with those qualities which are necessary to constitute 
a great and a successful warrior. 

The withdrawal of the greater part of the troops on 
the Niagara frontier, for the expedition down the St. 
Lawrence, left it almost defenceless. Fort George, in 
Canada West, was evacuated by General McClure 
who had been left in command ; but, before crossing 
the river, exceeding his orders, he directed the village 
of Newark to be burned. In retaliation for this act, 
which was promptly disavowed by the American gov- 
ernment, Fort Niagara was surprised on the night of 
the eighteenth of December, 1813, and its whole gar- 
rison, of near three hundred men, principally invalids, 
with the exception of a small number who made their 
escape, were put to tlio sword. Lewiston, Manches- 
ter, Youngstown, BuiTalo, and the village of the Tus- 
caroras, many of whom ha'l entered the service of the 



DUTIES OF HIS NEW OFFICE. 33 

United States, were burned, and the whole frontier 
laid waste. It was therefore determined to remove 
tlie principal scat of war to tliat quarter, during the 
approaching campaign, and about the middle of Feb- 
ruary, 1814, the American army abandoned their can- 
tonments at French Mills, in two columns ; — one 
marching to Sacketts Harbor, and subsequently pro- 
ceeding to Butlalo, under General Brown, and the 
other towards Lake Champlain, under Generals Wil- 
kinson and Macomb, for the purpose of making a di- 
version in favor of the contemplated operations on the 
Niagara. 

The column under General Brown reached Buffalo 
in March, where it was joined by the new volunteer 
levies. Having directed a camp of instruction to be 
established, for drilling the troops, and the regimental 
and company oflicers, he went back to Sacketts Har- 
bor, to complete the arrangements for the effectual co- 
operation of the naval force on Lake Ontario, under 
Commodore Chauncey. The spring of 1814 opened 
gloomy and inauspicious for the American cause. 
Party spirit ran high ; the country was laboring under 
severe pecuniary embarrassments ; bitter complaints 
were uttered in some quarters ; and in numerous in- 
stances the measures of the administration were 
thwarted, and its plans defeated. The temporary sus- 
pension of hostilities, on the European continent, left 
Great Britain at liberty to employ a larger portion of 
her army and navy in carrying on the war against the 
United States. It was now announced, -that she in- 
tended to prosecute a vigorous system of offensive 
measures ; to plunder and devastate our sea-coast ; and 



34 Jacob brown. 

desolate our frontiers with fire and sword. "When her 
designs were unilerstood on this side of the Atlantic, 
our citizens, with few exceptions, forgot, for tlie time, 
their political prejudices, and rallied with enthusiasm 
in support of the government. At no time daring ths 
war was the country provided with a suitable mditary 
establishment ; collections, therefore, were now made 
in the principal towns and cities, and large numbers 
of volunteers were equipped, and means furnished for 
their support, by voluntary contribution. 

Fortunately, too, at this important crisis, there were 
such men as Brown, Jackson, and INIacomb, to take 
command of our armies, and lead thcra on to victory. 
General Brown returned to Buffalo in June, and re- 
sumed the command of the army, which consisted, at 
this time, of the regular brigades under Generals 
Scott and Ripley, and a brigade of volunteers, with a 
few Indians, under Generals Porter and Swift. Not- 
withstanding his utmost exertions, he was unable to 
take the field vv'ith his command before the first of 
July. It was then determined to cross the river and 
capture Fort Erie, in the expectation that tiie British 
would be compelled to abandon Fort Niagara, and fall 
back on their posts on the head of the lake. During 
the night of the second instant, General Brown em- 
barked his troops, but little more than three thousand 
strong, at Black Rock ; and early in the morning of 
the third. General Scott landed below the fort with 
his brigade, and a battalion of artillery under Major 
Hindman, and General Ripley, with his brigade, above. 
The commanding general followed with the volunteer 
forces, — and a party of Indians were sent round 



ItATTLE OF CIIIPrEAVA. 35 

through the woods in rear of the enemy's position. 
The fort was soon invested, and a battery of heavy 
guns planted in a position that completely commandei 
its defences. Without awaiting the threatened as- 
sault, after firing a few guns, the garrison, to the num- 
ber of one hundred and seventy men, surrendered 
themselves prisoners of war. 

The main body of the British troops in the imme- 
diate vicinity of the river, amounting to over three 
thousand men, under INIajor General Riall, occupied 
an intrenched camp at Chippewa, about two miles 
above the 'Falls. Leaving a small garrison in Fort 
Eric, General Brown advanced, on the day after its 
reduction, against the position of General Riall. Tho 
brigade of General Scott, wliich, with Captain Tow- 
son's battery, formed the advance, had a running fight, 
for sixteen miles, with the 100th regiment, commanded 
by the Marquis of Tweedale, and finally drove it 
across the CJnppewa Creek. In the evening, the 
whole army encamped on the south bank of Street's 
Creek, the bridge over which had been destroyed by 
the jMarquis, w-ithin two miles of the enemy's works. 
Between this stream and the Chippewa, lay the broad 
plain on which the sanguinary engagement of the fol- 
lowing day took place. On the east were the waters 
of the Niagara, speeding along in their arrowy flight, 
to the cataract beyond ; and on the west was a dense 
forest of oaks, and beeches, and maples, extending for 
several miles into the interior. 

At an early hour on the morning of the fifth of July, 
the British light troops, consisting of Canadian militia 
and Lidians, who were posted in the woods on the left, 



36 JACOB BROA\'N. 

commenced making attacks on the American pickets 
placed on that flank, and small parties of the enemy 
occasionally appeared in the open plain in front. The 
commanding officer of one of the pickets having made 
a hasty retreat, and left one of his men woimded upon 
the ground, he was ordered instantly to give up his 
command, and another officer was directed to take 
charge of his party, and bring off the wounded man, 
which was accomplished without loss. General Brown 
could never look with complacency on a breach of dis- 
cipline, or violation of orders ; and when. accompanied 
with anything that bore the appearance of ci)wardice, 
it was sure to be visited, not merely with an indignant 
rebuke, but with summary punishment. He would 
tolerate the presence of no officer with the army, who 
could forget, under any circumstances, the honor of the 
profession to which he belonged. It is due to the offi- 
cer referred to, to remark, that he was permitted to 
engage in the battle as a volunteer, and discharged his 
duty manfully. He was afterwards tried by a court- 
martial, and honorably acquitted. 

General Brown was anxious to brinaf on an enwasre- 
ment with the enemy, and, in order to eireot this ob- 
ject, or, if that were found impossible, to put an end 
to the annoying fire of their skirmishers, he directed 
General Porter to fetch a circuit through the forest 
with the volunteers and Indians, and cut off their re- 
treat ; and the advanced parties were ordered to fall 
back before the fire of their opjwnents, and thus favor 
the movement. About four o'clock in the afternoon, 
General Porter encountered the light companies of the 
Royal Scots and the 100th regiment, in the woods. 



BATTLE OK ClUPPEWA. 37 

and drove them back upon the Chippewa, where they 
met the whole British column, under General Rial), 
who had anticipated the intentions of General Brown, 
and was now rapidly approaching, with the hope of 
finding the Americans unprej)ared for his reception. 

The commanding general had accompanied the vol- 
unteers, but, on hearing the roar of the artillery, and 
discovering the clouds of dust rising in the vicinity of 
(Chippewa bridge, he returned to camp, and ordered 
General Scott to advance forthwith, with the first bri- 
gade and Towson's battery, and engage the enemy on 
the open plain, while he brought up the second bri- 
gade, under General Ripley, to act at whatever point 
it might be needed. The order was executed with all 
possible speed. The troops under General Scott dashed 
across the creek, and through the clumps of bushes 
fringing its bank, under a galling fire of musketry and 
artillery, and were soon enveloped in the wreaths of 
sulphureous smoke rising over the battle field ; their 
shouts and cheers, borne merrily on the breeze, and tliu 
deep-toned thunder of their artillery, and their sharp 
rattling volleys, announcing the spirit and eagerness 
with which they entered into the contest. Meanwhile 
the British light troops had rallied, and compelled the 
volunteers of General Porter, in turn, to give way. 
The left flank of Scott's brigade, therefore, became 
much exposed ; and the 21st infantry, forming part 
of General Ripley's brigade, which had been held in 
reserve, was detached to gain the rear of the enemy's 
right flank. The greatest exertions were made to reach 
their position in time, but in vain ; for such was the 
impetuosity of the attack made by General Scott, that 



38 JACOU BROWN. 

the battle vras fnught, and the victory won, before they 
had time to participate in the conflict. 

After the retreat of the volunteers, the 25th infan- 
try, cominanded by iNIajor Jesup, on the extreme left 
of Scott's brigade, in the forest, was warmly pressed 
in front and in flank, being exposed to a withering 
tempest of musket balls that was fast thinning their 
ranks ; but, at this critical period, their brave leader 
gave his well-]cno\vn order, — " Support arms — forward 
march !" — ]Men who could advance without faltering 
in such fearful peril were not to be resisted. Having 
gained a more favorable position, they returned the 
Are of the enemy, with interest, and in a few minutes 
compelled them to seek safety in flight. 

In the otlier part of the field, equal zeal and gal- 
lantry were displayeil. The strife was bloody and 
fiercely contested on both sides, but of short duration. 
A warm fire was kept up for about an hour, when the 
enemy's artillery was silenced ; but their infantry were 
now ordered to move forward with charged bayonets. 
As they advanced, a raking fire was poured upon them 
from Towson's guns, winch Scott had posted in the 
road to Chippewa, and this was followed, almost in- 
stantly, by a destructive volley from the 9th and 11th 
infantry, thrown forward on their outer flanks, and that 
tremendous charge vrhich scattered tlie pride of the 
English soldiery like chafi" before the wind.* The 
enemy's whole line now wavered and broke, and they 
were hotly pursued to their intrenchments. Here the 
advance of the victors was checked by the batteries 
which opened their fire. General Brown had already 

♦ See Memoir of General Scott. 



THE VICTORY AND ITS RESULTS. 39 

hastened forward with the reserve, and joined in the 
pursuit. He at once decided to force tlie British posi- 
tion, whicli was well fortified, having a heavy battery 
on one flank, and a strong block-house on the other. 
The ordnance was brought up for the purpose, but, as 
the hour was late, and the men burning with thirst, 
and wearied with the fatigues of the day, upon consult- 
ing with his officers, it was concluded to retire to camp 
rather than hazard what had been gained by an attack 
which might terminate in a disastrous repulse. 

The number of troops actually engaged in this bat- 
tle, on the side of the British, was not far from twenty- 
one hundred : the American force was about nineteen 
hundred. The loss of the enemy, accordinsf to the 
official report of the action, was one hundred and thirty- 
eight killed, and three hundrcJ and sixty-five wounded 
and missing. Of the Americans there were sixty 
killed, and two hundred and sixt^'^-seven wounded and 
missinsf. 

This auspicious opening of the campaign, in a quar- 
ter, too, which had previously witnessed so much of 
defeat and disgrace, was hailed with acclamations of 
joy, in the farthest borders of the Union. Resolutions 
of thanks and congratulations were liberally shovrered 
on the American commander, and his brave officers and 
soldiers. No doubt, the associations connectel with 
the anniversary of Independence were of invaluable 
service in encouraging and inspiriting his troops ; still 
he was none the less deserving of commendation, for 
wisely availing himself of the emotions which the re- 
collections of that day were calculated to arouse. But 
the victory, in itself, was one of which all who partici- 



40 JACOB BROWN. 

pated in it might well be proud. Exposed to the fierce 
radiance of a summer's sun, with inferior numbers, 
they had met and vanquished disciplined troops, famil- 
iar with every art and device of war, and who had 
often fought and conquered, with Wellington, in the 
Spanish Peninsula. The battle took place in an open 
field ; the enemy had selected their position ; and the 
contest was determined solely by the superior bravery 
and skill of their opponents. The weapon, also, that 
decided the fate of the day, had for years been the 
Briton's pride and boast. To the bayonet he had arro- 
gantly pointed, as " the test of invincibility," and the 
sure and certain resource when all other means proved 
unavailing ; but courage and presumption went down 
together, before the shoclc of the glittering steel, that 
(lashed back the rays of the blazing orb whose parting 
cii'ulgence lingered around the spot hallowed by the re- 
cent triumph of American valor, and the success of the 
Am.erican arms ! 

After their defeat at Chippewa, the British were 
unwilling to hazard another action. On the eicjhth of 
July, General Ripley, who had been detached by Gen- 
eral Brown for that purpose, forced his way over the 
Chippewa Creek, about three miles above the enemy's 
camp ; whereupon. General Riall, thoiigh he had been 
reinforced by another regiment, abandoned his works, 
which were occupied by General Brown that evening. 
On the following day the British commander continued 
his retreat to Twenty-mile Creek. 

General Brown followed closely the retrograde move- 
ment of the British army, and encamped at Queens- 
town, or Queenston, as it is now usually \^1•itten, where 



SKIRMISHING. 



41 



he remained for several days, awaiting the arrival of 
some heavy guns, and the rifle regiment, which he had 
ordered from Sacketts Harbor, On the twelfth in- 
stant, a reconnaissance of the works at Fort George, 
preparatory to an investment, was made by General 
Swift, with a detachment of volunteers, one hundred 
and twenty in number. A picket guard were sur- 
prised and taken ; but, after their surrender, one of the 
prisoners turned and shot the general through the body. 
This cowardly act exasperated his men to such a de- 
gree, that they attacked a patrolling party who now 
made their appearance, alarmed by the report of the 
piece, with great gallantry, and succeeded in driving 
them into the fort. They then returned to camp, bring- 
ing with them their expi]-ing commander, who died in 
a few hours. 

On the eighteenth instant Lieutenant Colonel Stone 
was detached with a small volunteer force to dislodge 
a party posted four miles west of Queenston, near the 
village of St. David's, who were lying in wait to attack 
the reconnoitering parties of the American army. The 
party was routed and driven in to the main body, with 
commendable alacrity and zeal ; but after the action, 
the village was set fire to, and burned, by some of the 
volunteers, without the orders or knowledge, as was 
.alleged, of the officer commanding the expedition. — 
It had long been a favorite idea, and very properly so, 
with the American authorities, to conciliate the Cana- 
dian people. The latter were assured by the invading 
forces, on this as on other occasions, that they came 
" to conquer, but not to destroy ;" and strict orders 
had been issued against the commission of any out- 



42 JACOB EROV/N. 

rages iiron the persons, or pronerty, of private citizens. 
General Brown regarded the officer in command of the 
detachment as being responsible for this glaring viola- 
tion of duty, inasmuch as it was scarcely possible for 
the act to have been committed, except tln-ough negli- 
gence or connivance on his part ; and, on the following 
morning, he issued a peremptory order directing him to 
retire forthwith from the army. 

This prompt mode of dismissal occasioned considera- 
ble remark in military circles, and was pronounced, by 
many, an unwarranted assumption of authority. Un- 
der ordinary circumstances, it wo aid certainly have 
been regarded as an usurpation of power that ought 
not to be tolerated ; but the situatioj^ of the army was 
peculiar — they were in an enemy's country, and the 
neutrality of the inhabitants was absolutely essential 
to the accomplishment of their paramou.nt object, that 
of dislodging the enemy from the peninsula. An out- 
rage of this character could not remain unnoticed, and 
a delay, even of a few days, in meting out the appro- 
priate punishment, might put an end to all the hopes 
and expectations of the campaign. The case, there- 
fore, was one that required immediate action, and, 
tliougli General Brown was always careful not to in- 
fringe the rights of other officers unnecessarily, whether 
above or beneath him in rank, he never shrank from 
any responsibility, or hesitated in the performance of 
any duty. His course, however harsh it may seem, 
was approved by President Madison, who was never 
fond of the exercise of doubtful powers, — and by JNIr. 
Monroe, then his Secretary of State, in a letter ad- 
dressed to Admiral Cochrane. 



EFFORTS TO BRING ON ANOTHER ENGAGEMENT. 43 

Daring reconnaissanc3s of Forts George and Niagara 
were made by Generals Porter and-Hipley, and it was 
then decided at a council of war, to attack these posts, 
instead of following up the retreating forces under Gen- 
eral Riall. On the thirteenth of July, General Brown 
had written a pressing letter to Commodore Chauncey, 
informing hiia of his situation, and requesting him to 
luisten forward the ordnance and the reinforcements, 
which were to be transported in the vessels under 
his command, and inviting his couperation in a com- 
bined attack-, by land and water, on the forts at the 
mouth of the Niagara. No answer to this letter was 
received till the following September, in consequence 
of the illness of Commodore Chauncey. 

While in this state of suspense, the General decided 
to make a demonstration on Fort George, and to at- 
tempt to draw the enemy out into the open field. The 
inactivity which had prevailed since the previous bat- 
tle was no longer to be endured ; — and on the twentieth 
instant, he advanced with his whole army, drove in the 
enemy's outposts, and encamped near Fort George, in 
the expectation that General Riall would be drawn 
from his position, and offer him battle. Disappointed 
in this, he returned to Queenston on the twenty-second, 
and on the ensuing day he received a letter by express, 
from General Gaines, then in command at Sacketts 
Harbor, informing him that that port was blockaded 
by a strong naval force, — the enemy now having the 
ascendency on the lake, — and that Commodore Chaun- 
cey was seriously ill with a fever. 

This information materially changed the aspect of 
affairs. The artillery and reinforcements, upon which 



44 JACOB BROWN. 

he had confidently calculated, were no longer to be ex- 
pected ; and his future operations must be conducted 
entirely independent of them. Other Generals, per- 
haps equally as brave as himself, — and the history of 
modern warfare furnishes numerous examples in sup- 
port of the assertion, — would have susjiended all fur- 
ther efforts, or ordered an inglorious retreat, relying, 
for their justification, on the neglect of the government 
to provide the means and supplies which they desired. 
But, among the other valuable traits in his character, 
General Brown possessed that highest quality of the 
soldier — fertility of invention and resource. If the 
force placed at his disposal was not sufficient to accom- 
plish a favorite project, the energies of his mind were 
at once employed in achieving something besides, that 
would redound to the credit of the country, and the 
honor of her flag. With his little army of three thou- 
sand men he had crossed the Niagara, and established 
himself on British soil ; there he was determined to 
remain, and dispute its possession with the enemy, 
while there was a single chance, or hope of success, 
still left to cheer and encourage his brave and devoted 
band ! 

Being without the heavy guns necessary for an at- 
tack on Fort George, General Brown was forced, tliough 
much against his will, to abandon his designs on that 
post. But he was anxious, nevertheless, to bring on 
another engagement with General Riall ; and, influ- 
enced by this desire, continued his feigned retreat up 
the river, on the twenty-fourth, recrossed the Chip- 
pewa, and encamped. If 1his movement failed to draw 
the enemy from their position, he designed to make a 



BATTLE OF NIAGARA. 45 

rapid march on Burlington. About noon on the twen- 
ty-fifth, while his men were busily engaged in making 
preparations for the march, he was intbrmed tiuit the 
B^iti^^h appeared in considerable force on Queenston 
heights ; that four of their vessels had arrived during 
the previous night at the mouth of the Niagara ; and 
that a number of boats were moving up the stream. 
A few minutes later he received the further informa- 
tion, which proved to be incorrect, that the enemy had 
landed one thousand men at Lewiston, and were threat- 
cninaf his basfLraije and stores at Schlosser. 

The troops w^ere instantly ordered under arms, and 
in twenty minutes General Scott was on the road to 
Queenston with his brigade, Towson's artillery, and a 
troop of dragoons. About two miles from the Ameri- 
can camp, and within a short distance of the Falls, he 
learned that the enemy were in force in his front, sepa- 
rated from view only by a narrow piece of wood. Hav- 
ing dispatched Assistant Adjutant General Jones, to 
General Brown, with the intelligence, he held on his 
march, and in a short time discovered the British army, 
treble his own force in numbers, strongly posted on 
Lundy's Lane, which led up from the Falls to Beaver 
Dams. Regardless of the great disparity between the 
two armies. General Scott promptly made his disposi- 
tions for battle, fully determined to maintain hisgi'ound 
till the reserve came up. As the head of his column 
cleared the wood on the brink of the cataract, whose 
low deep thunder was echoed by the enemy's artillery, 
which immediately opened its fire, it was encircled by 
the rainbow that spanned the boiling Phlegethon beside 
it. Like the cross that infused new ardor into the sol- 



46 JACOB BROWN. 

cliers of Constantine, tliis was regarded as the omen, 
the sure presage of victory. With their sabres and 
bayonets gleaming in the rays of the setting sun, and 
their faces flowing with 

" The stern joy which warriors feel, 
In foemen worthy of their steel," 

the Americans now deployed in line on the left of the 
Queenston road. Major Jesup was thrown forward on 
the right with his regiment, and Captain Towson was 
posted on the left opposite the enemy's artillery. All 
were elated with their recent victory, and animated l?y 
the best spirit. Undismayed by the terrible fire which 
they encountered, they advanced firmly and steadily 
against the closely serried columns of the enemy. 

The British position was well cliosen. They had 
seized a commanding eminence at the head of Lundy's 
Lane, upon which their battery of nine guns was planted, 
and swept the field of battle with an incessant torrent 
of cannon balls. Their forces, at first engaged, con- 
sisted of the whole army under General Riall, who had 
marched down from his position, directly to the Falls, 
with the expectation of meeting Lieutenant General 
Drummond at this point. The latter had arrived at 
the mouth of the Niagara on the evening of the twen- 
ty-fourth, with large reinforcements, collected at Kings- 
ton and various other points on the lake, and was has- 
tening as rapidly as possible to join General Riall. 
He arrived on the ground shortly after the commence- 
ment of the action, accompanied by his men, and 
assumed the command of the united force, now between 
four and five thousand strong. 



INCIDENTS OF THE BATTLE. 47 

General Scott and his men held their ground man- 
fully, till the arrival of General Brown, who had hur- 
ried forward with his suite, in advance of the brigades 
of Generals Ripley and Porter, as soon as the firing was 
heard. Meanwhile the 11th and 22nd infantry, under 
Colonel Brady and Major JMcNeil, both of whom were 
severely wounded, having expended their ammunition, 
were withdrawn from action, and the whole brunt of 
Ihe battle in front, was sustained by the 9th infantry, 
commanded by Major Leavenworth. With unswerv- 
ing courage this regiment resisted every effort of the 
enemy, though with the loss of half their number, un- 
til their opponents suspended the attack. General 
Riall was deceived by the obstinacy of their resistance, 
and as it was impossible to distinguish objects with any 
precision in the gloaming, he supposed the entire Amer- 
ican army was engaged, and was therefore content to 
wait for General Drummond to come up with the rein- 
forcements. 

For a few mom.ents the roar of battle was hushed, 
and the silence was only broken by the unceasing mur- 
mur of the cataract, and the groans of the wounded 
and the dying. During the temporary suspension of 
the fire, General Ripley, with his brigade and the re- 
mainder of the artillery under Major Hindman, and 
tlie volunteers under General Porter, arrived upon the 
giound. With these fresh troops General Brown 
formed a new alignment, to cover the exhausted com- 
mand of General Scott, who fell back behind their 
comrades. The respite was of brief duration, and the 
action was soon renewed with increased warmth. 
Wider and wider reverberated the deep echoes of the 



48 JACOB BRO■^^'Tf, 

artillery ; higher and higher rose the sharp, continued 
roll of musketry ; loud was the Briton's cheer, and 
louder yet the answering shout of defiance ! 

Captain Towson had failed to make any impression 
on the enemy's battery, though his guns were skilfully 
and actively directed; and on the renewal of the en- 
gagement, under the advice of jMajor McRee, the senior 
engineer officer, General Brown determined to carry 
the eminence on which it was posted, at the point of 
the bayonet. The execution of this enterprise was in- 
trusted to Colonel Miller with the 21st infantry. The 
reply of the gallant colonel, when he received the order 
to advance, from General Ripley, is memorable in his- 
tory — " I u'ill trji, sir .'" said the intrepid soldier.* 
The trial was made, — nor made in vain. Supported 
by the 23rd infantry under Major McFarland, while 
the Ist infantry, under Colonel Nicholas, which had 
joined the army that day, was left to receive the ene- 
my's fire in front. Colonel Miller moved up the hill 
through a raging flood of missiles. The 1st staggered 
under the tremendous fire to which it was exposed, 
the 23rd faltered, but the brave 21st, following their he- 
roic leader, rushed up the height with accelerated speed. 
On reaching the summit they paused an instant, and 
then rushed forward with shouts and cheers. The Brit- 
isii troops had fought bravely, for tliey were anxious to 
wipe out the discredit of their late defeat. The can- 
noniers were transfixed at their posts, and for a few 
seconds there was a fierce contest fought hand to hand, 
over the loaded guns. But the daring onset of the 

• The reply of Colonel Miller was adopted as the motto of liis regi- 
ment, and was worn on their buttons. 



GENERAL RIALL TAKEN PRISONER. 49 

Americans was not to be resisted ; the discipline of the 
British soldiery gave way before it ; their artillery was 
cajitured, and their routed columns, sullen and discon- 
tented, retired slowly down the hill. 

Meanwhile Major Jesup had turned the enemy's left 
with the 2oth infantry, and, favored by the darkness, 
had cautiously advanced in their rear. A detachment 
from his command, und(;r Captain Ketchum, succeeded 
in reaching the place where Generals Drummond and 
lliall were stationed with their suites. The former 
made his escape, but the latter was taken prisoner with 
his staff". A large number of prisoners, in addition, 
were captured by Major Jesup, and he then moved to 
the left to attack the enemy in rear. Coming upon a 
body of their troops posted in the Queenston road, about 
the time of the capture of the battery, his men deliv- 
ered their fire, as galling as it was unexpected, and in- 
stantly dashed over the fence that separated them. The 
enemy broke and fled, and, as the 1st and 23rd infan- 
try had been already rallied by the animated efforts of 
General Ripley, the whole British line was now forced. 

General Brown M'as prompt to improve the advan- 
tage he had gained, as the British officers were heard 
encouraging their men for a desperate effort to recover 
their cannon. While they were engaged in, reforming 
their broken masses under the hill, he advanced his 
line, placing the captured guns in his rear; General 
Porter being on the extreme left with his volunteers. 
General Ripley's brigade occupying the centre, and 
Major Hindman being stationed in the interval between 
the second brigade and the 25th infantry, which was 

S 



50 JACOB BROWN. 

posted on the right of the line. The first brigade, un- 
der General Scott, was held in reserve. 

A gloomy and ominous silence prevailed for a short 
time, and it was then interrupted by the lively strains 
of martial music, as the British columns were again 
ordered to advance. General Druramond had given 
his men but a few moments to recover from the effects 
of their repulse. With great daring and intrepidity 
they marched up the height, at double quick time, pre- 
senting an extended \me outflanking the Americans on 
both extremes. Within twenty yards of the crest of 
the eminence, they poured forth their volleys, and 
prepared to rush forward with their bayonets. In 
an instant the American line was one blaze of fire. 
The enemy staggered ; another volley, follovv'ed rapidly 
by another, and still another, caused them to break 
and retire down the hill in confusion, despite the 
exertions of their officers to inspire them with confi- 
dence. 

Another half hour passed in suspense, and again the 
measured tread of the advancing columns was heard, 
as they rose the hill. The Americans reserved their 
fire till it could be most effective, and when the enemy 
came within range, the artillery of Major Hindman 
once more pealed forth its brazen notes, and, as they 
pressed nearer and nearer, the rattling musketry was 
added to the din. But the constant shower of shot 
and ball poured upon them soon chocked their ad- 
vance. For nearly half an hour they strove in vain to 
overcome the firmness of the American troops. The 
contest was warm and animated ; and, daring its 
continuance, General Scott, who had consolidated his 



LAST EFFORTS OF THE EXEMY. 51 

brigade into one battalion, under Major Leaven- 
worth, made two effective charges on the li^i't and 
right of the British line, in the latter of wliicli he 
received two severe wounds, that soon after obliged 
him to quit the field. General Brown was always 
where his presence was needed — in the front of 
the battle. Heedless of the exposure of his per- 
son, he was ever ready to utter words of encour- 
agement where symptoms of hesitation were mani- 
fested ; to commend every act of noble daring ; and 
to arouse his men to further exertions. His elforts 
were well seconded by the chivalric bearing and the 
dauntless intrepidity of Scott and Ripley and Por- 
ter. Unable to make head aii^ainst the stern and 
unyielding resistance of the American soldiers. Gen- 
eral Drummond was a second time forced to draw off 
his men. 

The contest was not yet ended. Additional rein- 
forcements had joined the enemy, and, after the lapse 
of another hour, their hesitating columns were encour- 
aged to make one more effort for the victory. Regard- 
less of the havoc made in their ranks, the British 
troops advanced boldly under a withering fire. This 
time they gained the summit of the hill, never pausing 
after they had delivered their fire, and closed with 
their antaafonists. The battle was now at its height. 
The beams of the rising moon struggled vainly to pen- 
etrate the murky pall that overhung the field of com- 
bat, but the darkness was illuminated by the constant 
flashing of musketry and artillery. Two lines of 
armed men, merged with each other, were seen surging 
to and fro. The earth shook beneath their feet. Foot 



52 JACOB CROWN. 

to foot, and breast to breast, they fought. Locked 
in the death struggle, the Briton and the American 
fell together. The green sward was soaked with 
blood ; it collected in pools in the ridges made by the 
ploughing shot ; and ran down in rivulets to mingle its 
crimson dyes with the limpid waters of the Niagara. 

General Brown had previously received a severe 
wound from a musket ball which passed through his 
right thigh, and as he now moved to the left of the 
American line, to encourage the volunteers to remain 
firm, he was struck violently upon his left side by a 
missile of some description. The blow nearly unhorsed 
him, and on meeting Colonel Wood, he expressed his 
doubts as to his ability to keep the saddle. " Never 
mind, my dear general," was the reply, " you are gain- 
ing the greatest victory that was ever gained by your 
nation I" Cheered by these words, which indicated the 
spirit prevailing among his officers and men. General 
Brown remained on his horse, giving his orders with 
wonted firmness and promptitude. The American 
troops were sorely pressed, but they were more than a 
match for their opponents. In vain was every ellbrt 
of the latter. The artillery on both sides was taken 
and retaken during the struggle, but the British were 
finally forced to yield the ground, leaving their guns in 
the hands of the Americans. 

At midnight the contest terminated. The British 
made no further effort to regain the position, but 
shrunk silently away in the darkness. Faint from ex- 
ce.ssive pain and the loss of blood, General Brown was 
now assisted from the field by his staff. General 
Scott being also disabled, the command was assumed 



i 



LOSSES OF THE TWO ARMIES. 53 

by General Ripley, under whose directions the wounded 
were collected, and orders were then issued for a return 
to camp. The artillery horses being all killed, and 
there being no drag-ropes at hand, General Ripley 
very reluctantly left the captured guns on the ground, 
having rolled the smaller pieces down the hill. This 
circumstance was seized with avidity by the British 
officers to give color to their claim that they had de- 
feated the American army, and it has frequently served 
a similar pvu'pose in the works of British writers. A 
few considerations Avill show how utterly unfounded was 
this claim. The Americans attacked their opponents 
in a position of their own .selection. This position they 
seized, and held against three daring and desperate 
efforts to regain it. It was yielded, but yielded volun- 
tarily ; and being withojit the means to remove the 
guns. General Ripley left them on the field, and re- 
turned to the American camp unmolested. The enemy 
remained nearer the battle-ground, as their tents and 
baggage were directly in rear of their line ; and when 
they discovered on the following morning, that the 
guns had been abandoned, they took possession of 
them without difficulty, there being no one to oppose 
them. 

The truth is, that both parties sustained a severe 
loss in this sanguinary conflict, and neither desired to 
renew it while the odds were in favor of their antago- 
nists. In the morning of the twenty-sixth, General 
Ripley collected all the American troops fit for duty, 
and with this force, which barely amounted to fifteen 
hundred men, he sallied out to seek another contest 
with the enemy. On approaching the field on which 



54 JACOB BROWK. 

the action of the previous day had been fought, he 
found them strongly posted in a still iTiore favorable 
position, slightly in advance of that formerly oocapied. 
Becoming satisfied that it would be unwise to attacl-i 
a superior force under such circumstances, he again 
returned to camp, and subsequently retired to Fort 
Erie, the defences of which were immediately strength- 
ened and extended, m accordance with the instructions 
of General Brown. 

The British force engaged in the battle of Niagara, 
was little short of five thousand ; that of the Ameri- 
cans was nearly one third less. The latter sustained 
the heaviest loss in killed and wounded, however, on 
account of the galling severity of the British fire previ- 
ous to the capture of their guns. The Americans had 
seven hundred and forty -three men killed and wounded, 
and the British sLx hundred and forty -three. The lat- 
ter lost two hundred and thirty-five men taken prison- 
ers, and the former one hundred and seventeen. The 
aggregate loss of the British, therefore, was a trifle 
greater than that of the Americans. Generals Brown 
and Scott, as has been mentioned, were badly wounded; 
Generals Drummond and Riall, the latter being like- 
wise captured, also received severe wounds. 

General Drummond did not offer to molest the 
American army in their march to Fort Erie, or ven- 
ture to make an attack on that post, till the 3rd of 
August, when he had been reinforced by General De 
Watteville, with one thousand men. He then invested 
the fort, and made preparations for its reduction. On 
the fifth of August, General Gaines arrived from 
Sackctts Harbor, and assumed the command. The 



ATTACK or lOUT EKIU. 65 

enemy continnetl thtiir approaches, and on the thir- 
teenth and fourteenth a heavy cannonade was kept 
up, which was followed by an assault early in the 
morninG: of the fifteenth instant.* The work was 
poorly calculated to withstand a siege, being nothing 
more tlian a small redoubt, occupying the centre of an 
intrenched camp, of which it formed the strong point. 
The enemy were, notwithstanding, repulsed with great 
loss, by the gallantry and good conduct of General 
Gaines and the otficers and men under his command. 
During the siege General Gaines was severely 
wounded by the bursting of a shell, and on the twenty 
eighth instant, he retired to Buffalo, leaving General 
Ripley in charge of the post. 

Having partially recovered from his wounds, General 
Brown once more resumed the command on the second 
of September. The defences of Fort Erie had already 
suffered considerable injury from the enemy's fire, and 
the garrison were kept constantly at work repairing 
the damages, and adding to the works. Frequent 
skirmishes took place, and the cannonading on either 
side was maintained, at intervals, with spirit and 
warmth. Reinforcements were daily expected to ar- 
rive from the army on Lake Champlain, but they did 
not make their appearance, and it was soon evident 
that the post could not be held much longer against 
the efforts of the enemy. General Brown fretted like 
an imprisoned lion, and, on the seventeenth of Septem- 
ber, discovering that General Drummond had con- 
structed another battery, that would open a destructivo 

* See Memoir of General Guides. 



56 JACOB BROWN. 

fire on the following day, he planned a sortie, which 
has been justly considered as the chef cP OBUvre of his 
military career. 

The infantry of the besieging force was divided into 
three brigades, each containing twelve or fifteen hun- 
dred men, one of which was stationed alternately in 
the works in front o-f the fort, for the protection of 
the artillerists, and the other two occupied the main 
camp about two miles in the rear. The circumvalla- 
tion consisted of two lines of intrenchments supported 
by blockhouses, in advance of which the enemy had 
constructed their batteries. It was General Bro^A^l^s 
intention " to storm the batteries, destroy the cannon, 
and roughly handle the brigade on duty, before those in 
reserve could be brought up." The project was well 
conceived and admirably executed. 

At noon on the seventeenth, the troops intended to 
make the sortie were paraded under arms. The sally- 
ing force was divided into two columns ; the left, com- 
manded by General Porter, and consisting of the rifles 
and a body of Indians under Colonel Gibson, the Penn- 
sylvania volunteers under Colonel AVood, the New York 
volunteers under General Davis, and the 1st and 23rd 
infantry under Major Brooks, was ordered to move 
cautiously upon the enemy's right, by a circuitous road 
previously opened through the woods ; and the right, 
commanded by General Miller, and consisting of the 
first brigade, was directed to enter a ravine between 
the fort and the British lines, and advance rapidly u]ion 
the enemy's works as soon as General Porter became 
engaged. General Ripley remained in reserve with 
the 21st infantry, between the new bastions of the fort ; 



SORTIE FROM FORT ERIE. 57 

his command, and that of General Miller, being both 
out of view of the enemy. 

The day was dark and lowering. A thick mist 
rested upon the lake and river, and floated lazily along 
their banks. The clouds overhead were surcharged 
with moisture, and sent down copious showers of rain. 
Favored by these circumstances, the American columns 
gained their positions unperceived. General Porter ad- 
vanced with such celerity and caution, that his men 
sprang upon the enemy's pickets before they were 
aware of his presence. As soon as the rapid volleys of 
General Porter were heard, General Brown ordered 
General Miller to advance, the head of his column 
being directed towards the interval between batteries 2 
and 3. Dashing forward at full speed, General Miller 
reached the enemy's line and pierced their entrench- 
ments. The British were taken by surprise, yet they 
fought bravely and well. The contest was close and 
animated, but brief. Within thirty minutes after the 
first gun was fired, batteries 2 and 3 were in possession 
of the American troojjs, who swept every thing before 
them with the bayonet. Battery number 1 was then 
abandoned by the enemy, and the Americans, without 
loss of time, commenced the work of demolition. The 
British guns were spiked or otherwise destroyed, their 
breastworks levelled, and the magazine of battery num- 
ber 3 was blown up. 

General Ripley had now brought up the reserve, and 
was making preparations for a demonstration on the 
enemy's camp, when he was disabled by a severe wound. 
The object of the sortie having been accomplished, in 
the destruction, by a force of regulars and volunteers, 

3* 



58 JACOB BRO-VViV*. 

only two thousanJ strong, of the labors of (out thou- 
sand men for a period of near fifty days, General iNIil- 
ler ordered his men to fall back to the ravine, and Gen- 
eral Brown then directed all the corps to return to camp 
with their prisoners, which was done in good order. In 
this affair the Americans had eighty-three men killed, 
two hundred and sixteen wounded, and there w^ere two 
hundred and sixteen missing. Three hundred and 
eighty-five of the enemy were taken prisoners, and 
there were between four and five hundred killed and 
wounded. 

This daring sortie put an end to the leaguer. Dur- 
ing the night of the twenty-first of September, Gene- 
ral Drummond broke up his camp, and retreated to his 
intrenchments behind the Chippewa. Not long after, 
General Izard arrived from Sacketts Harbor with large 
reinforcements, and on the twelfth of October, being 
the senior officer, he superseded General Brown in the 
command. No further incident of importance occurred, 
however, on this frontier. The gallant exploit of the 
seventeenth of September was the appropriate /?;2 a /e 
of a bloody campaign, unsurpassed, during the war, for 
the display of firmness, valor, and intre])i(lity. Leav- 
ing a sufficient garrison at Fort Erie, General Izard 
moved down towards the Chippewa with the remainder 
of jiis forces, and offered battle to the enemy, but they 
declined leaving their intrenchments. A partial en- 
gagement took place between detached corps on the 
nineteenth of October, which closed the operations of 
the campaign ; and early in November the American 
army retired into winter quarters on the opposite side 
of the Niagara 



HIS DECEASE. 59 

The treaty of Ghent, in December of this year, ter- 
minated the war, and the services of General Brown 
in the field. Upon the reduction of the army he was 
retained on the peace establishment, and placed in com- 
mand of the northern military division. In 1821 ho 
was appointed General-in-chief, and from that time till 
his death, whicli occurred on the twenty-fourth of Feb- 
ruary, 1828, he resided at Washington. The disease 
which terminated his life was superinduced by another 
contracted at Fort Erie, from which he was never wholly 
exempt. 

General Brown did not enter the military profession 
solely from motives of patriotism, though these ever 
guided and governed his conduct ; — he was a soldier 
con amore I Early disciplined in the school of adver- 
sity and trained to habits of self-reliance, — and gifted 
with superior mental endowments, which had been 
carefully cultivated, — he possessed that happy combi- 
nation of faculties and acquirements which rarely fails 
to aeliieve success. He was a correct and thoroua^h 
disciplinarian ; industrious, methodical, and indefatiga- 
ble ; brave, both physically and morally ; stout in per- 
son and strong of nerve ; bold and energetic in carry- 
ing out his offensive movements ; firm, but cautious, 
when acting on the defence ; sagacious in council ; and 
coo], calm, and collected, amid the roar of battle. In 
the language of the general order announcing his de- 
cease to the army — " Quick to perceive and sagacious 
to anticipate, prompt to decide and daring in execution, 
he was born with the qualities which constitute a great 
commander. His military coup iV (tU^ his intuitive 
penetration, his knowledge of men and his capacity to 



60 JACOB BROWN. 

control them, were known to all his companions in arms, 
and commanded their respect ; while the gentleness of 
his disposition, the courtesy of his deportment, his scru- 
pulous regard to their rights, his constant attention to 
their wants, and his afliectionate attachment to their 
persons, universally won their hearts, and bound them 
to him as a father." 

The death of one so highly esteemed produced a 
deep impression, and was sincerely lamented, not only 
by his brethren in arms, but by all to whom he had 
become endeared in the relationships of private life. 
Cut off in the vigor of manhood by a disease contracted 
in the service of his country, she still treasures his 
memory as that of one among the most honored of her 
sons. Like the amaranth, his fame is endm-ing and 
imperishable ; and while the ceaseless murmurs of the 
cataract rise beside the battle-field of Niagara, his gal- 
lant daring and determined courage will be gi'atcfully 
remembered by his countrymen. 



I?, ^~ 







EDMOND PENDLETON UAINES, 
Brigadier General, Major General by Brevet. 



EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 



It is no slight praise to say of the subject of this 
memoir, that his name is honorably associated with the 
war of 1812, from its commencement to its termination. 
When disasters were so frequent, and defeat so often 
sustained, where others were concerned, it is refreshing 
to find, that he never wanted the will, and when his 
means were sufficient, never lacked the ability, to re- 
trieve the one, and to wipe out the disgrace of the other. 
Ever to be found where duty placed him, — prompt, 
brave, and skilful, — these are high merits in a soldier, 
and entitle their possessor to a worthy place among his 
compeers. 

Virginia is often termed "the mother of statesmen," 
— and she may also be regarded as the birth-place of 
heroes. Like Harrison and Scott, General Gaines 
drew his first breath in the Old Dominion. He was 
born on the twentieth day of March, 1777, in Culpep- 
per county, near the eastern base of the Blue Ridge, 
where it looks down upon the rolling table land, and 
undulating slopes, drained by the waters of the Rappa- 
hannock. His father, James Gaines, was a nephew of 
Edmund Pendleton, — after whom his son was named, 
— a profound and able lawyer, who was for many years 



62 EDMUND PENDLETOX GAINES. 

presiding julge of the Court of Appeals of the state of 
Virginia. In the latter part of the Revolution, the 
father conimamled a company of volunteers, and did 
good serviee in that capacity. At the close of the war 
he removed to the northwest border of North Carolina. 
He represented the county in which he resided, in the 
legislature of that state, and was afterwards a member 
of the convention by which the federal constitution was 
rejected. Like many of the most patriotic citizens of 
Virginia, North Carolina, and other states, he was at first 
opposed to that instrument ; but, his objections having 
been removed by the adoption of the " bill of riglits," 
he v^oted in its favor. 

Young Gaines was early familiarized to scones of 
war and bloodshed. Born in a frontier settlement, dur- 
ing the perilous times of the revolutionary struggle, 
when the whole colony was in a state of constant fer- 
ment and agitation, though not old enough to appre- 
ciate the importance of the principles for Avhich his 
countrymen were contending, he was deeply imbued 
with the spirit that animated the men of that great era 
in the history of our nation. In the s])arsely-peopled 
region to which his j)arcnts had removed, the means 
of obtaining information were very limited, and, as 
his father was in moderate circumstances, he enjoyed 
but few advantages of that character. These were 
carefully improved, however, under tlie direction and 
superintendence of his mother, who possessed a fine 
mind, and had received a goo.l education. A friend, 
by the name of Ralph Mitchell, whose acquaintance he 
formed while a more youth, instructed him in mathema- 
tics, and he subsequently became an accurate surve3^or. 



RECEIVES HIS FIRST COMMISSION. * 63 

When he was about thirteen years of age, his father 
emigi'ated to Sullivan county, in tliat mountainous 
tract of country, now known as East Tennessee, lying 
between the Stone and Cumberland mountains. This 
section of the union was then new, and but thinly in- 
habited. Being in the immediate vicinity of the theatre 
of the depredations committed by the Creeks and Cher- 
okees, tales of border warfare were rife, and the legends 
of " the dark and bloody ground " were often repeated 
by the fireside of the elder Gaines. Themes like these 
were calculated to enkindle a desire for entering the 
profession of arms in the bosom of his young son, who 
listened to them with eager interest, and he soon gave 
unequivocal indications that his thoughts were turned 
in that direction. From bovhood he had been taught 
to labor, — to swing the axe, and follow the plough. 
When not thus employed, or busy in storing his mind 
with useful information, he rambled throuijh the forests 
in search of game. In his hours of pastime the rifle 
was his constant companion, and he is said to have ex- 
celled all his companions in the use of that weapon. 
Passing his time in these occupations, his constitution, 
naturally strong and vigorous, had become hardened 
and invigorated, and fitted to endure the sufferings and 
vicissitudes of a soldier's life. He was likewise bold 
and fearless, daring and determined ; — no difficulty 
retarded him, no dansrer deterred. 

He now occupied his leisure hours in reading and 
studying such military and historical works as he could 
procure ; and at the age of eighteen he was elected to 
a lieutenancy in a rifle company commanded by Cap- 
tain J. Cloud. No opportunity was yet presented for 



■J 
64 4||;, ED^ruND pendleton gaines. 

gi-atiiying the first wish of his heart, and he concluded 
to turn his attention to another profession. When not 
otherwise busied, much of his time had latterly been 
spent in surveying. In this way he had provided him- 
self with a small supply of funds, and on attaining his 
majority, he commenced the study of the law, and pur- 
sued it as fast as his limited means would allow.v 
Wliile thus engaged, he was recommended by his friend, 
the Hon. W. C. C. Claiborne, then a member of Con- 
gress from the state of Tennessee, and afterwards gov- 
ernor of Louisiana, for an appointment in the army 
The recommendation proved successful, and on the 
tenth of January, 1799, he received his first commis- 
sion, as an ensign. 

The long-cherished desire of young Gaines was now 
gratified, and the way opened for him to win honor and 
renown in the armies of his country. In the autumn 
of 1799, he was promoted to the rank of 2nd lieutenant 
in the 6th infantry, and sent on the recruiting service. 
His regiment being afterwards disbanded, he was at- 
tached to the 4th infantry, then under the command of 
Colonel Thomas Butler. In the summer of 1801, 
Colonel Butler received orders from tlie War Depart- 
ment, to select a subaltern from his regiment to make 
a tojKjgraphical survey from Nashville to Natchez, for 
the location of a military road. Lieutenant Gaines 
was selected for tliis duty, and was employed in dis- 
charging it, and in the survey of some Indian boundary 
lines, till the winter of 1803-4, — having, in the mean- 
time, been raised to the rank of 1st lieutenant. 

The Spanish government, being dissatisfied with the 
transfer of Louisiana to the United States, refused to 



APPOINTED MILITARY COLLECTOR. -»*■ DO 

witiiilraw her troops from Fort Conde, at Mobile, and 
from Baton Rouge, — and to deliver up possession of 
(he country lying north of the Isle of Orleans, and the 
(lulf of Mexico, and between the Mississippi and the 
Perdido, — insisting that the territory embraced within 
those limits formed a part of her Florid i an possessions, 
and was not included in the cession to Francs. Mr. 
Jeilerson well knew that the country was wholly un- 
prepared for M'ar, and, in conformity with the peaceful 
policy of his administration, was unwilling, at that 
time, to submit the question in dispute to the arbitra- 
ment of the sword ; yet, lest it might be said that the 
United States had tacitly acquiesced in the claim of 
the Si)anish authorities, he resolved to appoint a mili- 
tary collector for the district of Mobile. The appoint- 
ment was conferred on Lieutenant Gaines, in 1804, 
and he immediately estabUshed himself at Fort Stod- 
dart, thirty-six miles north of Mobile. 

He at once looked forward, with eager hope and ex- 
pectation, to the time when he would be required " to 
flesh his maiden sword ;" a collision seemed unavoida- 
ble, and he supposed it would soon be necessary to as- 
sert the rights of his government, and the authority 
deputed to him, by force of arms. In this lie was dis- 
appointed ; but a circumstance shortly after transpired, 
that brought him into notoriety, — of a very different 
character, indeed, from what he had desired or antici- 
pated, yet it is not at all probable that he ever regret- 
ted his connection with the transaction. — In 1806 he 
was appointed postmaster, and selected as the confiden- 
tial agent of the post-office department, being clothed 
with the power of suspending postmasters and con- 



66 ' EDMUND PENDLETON tJAINES. 

tractors concerned in what was called, " the conspiracy 
of Aaron Burr." Young and ardent, in heart and soul 
a patriot, it is not strange that he should have shared 
ill the prevalent feeling, and approved the public judg- 
ment that denounced Colonel Burr as a traitor. Ho 
may have been mistaken in this, and if so, it was an 
error into which he was very likely to fall : — the projects 
, of Colonel Burr are still shrouded in mystery ; he who 
was chiefly interested in removing the odium attached 
to them in the estimation of his countrymen, if that 
were possible, refused to make any explanations ; to 
the close of his life he maintained a studied reserve, 
and when he died, " he made no sign" ! 

Lieutenant Gaines was quite active in discharging 
the extraordinary mission intrusted to him, and in fer- 
reting out the parties implicated in the supposed con- 
spiracy. He arrested Colonel Burr ; and, on account 
of his acquaintance with the western country, he re- 
ceived the temporary appointment of marshal, in which 
capacity he summoned a number of witnesses to attend 
the trial. About the same time he was promoted to 
the rank of captain. Although his conduct had been 
governed by the best and purest motives, and he had 
but faithfully carried out the instructions of those whom 
it was his duty to obey, he incurred the bitterest ani- 
mosity of the friends of Colonel Burr, and was severely 
attacked on the trial ; and, in his subsequent life, he 
was often taught to feel, that they had neither forgot- 
ten nor forgiven him. 

Soon after his connection with this affair terminated, 
seeing nothing before him but a life of inaction wholly 
unsuited to his active temperament, he decided to re- 



RE-ENTERS THE ARMY, 67 

tii\^ frnm ilie army, and enter the legal profession. 
Before announcing lii^ determination, he wisely hesi- 
tated : — iliCYc was a prospect of war with England, — 
though, after the settlement of the affair of the Chesa- 
peake, a remote one, — and he therefore concluded 
merely to apply for leave of absence. This was cor- 
dially sjranted bv his commandinof officer, General 
Hampton, and he now commenced the practice of the 
law in the counties of Washington and Baldwin, in 
what was then the Mississippi territory, but now the 
State of Alabama. He had just rode his second cir- 
cuit, under auspices highly flattering to his talents and 
abilities, when the alternative, of rejoining the army 
or finally throwing up his commission, was presented. 
The call of his country was the catl of duty. The 
summons to arms was joyfully obeyed, and at the com- 
mencement of tlie war of 1812, he resumed his sword, 
and his position in the service. 

The year 1812 closed without furnishing him an op- 
portunity to distinguish himself. In the spring of 
1813, he was attached to the North-western army, and 
rose, by rapid promotions, to the command of a regi- 
ment. A long and tedious illness prevented his parti- 
cipation in the battle of the Thames, but he recovered 
in time to accompany the ill-fated expedition of Gene- 
ral Wilkinson down the St. Lawrence.* Ha was 
present at the battle of Chrystler's fields, on the elev- 
enth of November, and for his gallantry on that occa- 
sion was mentioned in terms of high commendation, in 
the official dispatch of General Boyd. In the action 
he commanded the 25th infantry, one of the finest and 
♦ See Memoir of General Brown, a7ite. 



^ EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

most effective regiments in the service, and after the 
British had been beaten back, in accordance with the. 
instructions of the commander-in-chief to General 
Boyd, he was directed to cover the re-embarkation of 
the American troops. 

This service was performed with skill, fearlessness, 
and promptitude. Colonel Morrison, of the 89th Brit- 
ish foot, the oflicer in command of the enemy, ani- 
mated by the hope of achieving some certain success 
during the day, pushed hard upon him with a large 
body of troops. His men stood firm and immovable as 
the rocks beneath their feet. A desperate onset was 
made by the enemy to overwhelm him, but after an ob- 
stinate struggle they were completely repulsed. He 
then joined the advance, retiring with his command 
slowly and deliberately to their boats. Colonel Morri- 
son was so well pleased with the brave conduct of the 
regiment, that, after the action, he sent his card to its 
commanding officer, with a message expressing his ad- 
miration, and desiring to know his name, in order that 
if they should chance to meet when the two countries 
were at peace, he might claim the privilege of an old 
friend and fellow soldier. It need not be added, that 
Colonel Gaines promptly complied with the request and 
returned the compliment. 

Colonel Gaines accompanied the army into winter 
quarters at French Mills, and, on the ninth of March, 
1814, he received the commission of a brigadier gene- 
ral. At the opening of the following campaign, we 
find him placed in command at Sacketts Harbor, upon 
the departure of General Brown and his army for the 
Niagara frontier. Here he was assiduously employed 



DEFENCE OP FORT ERIE. 69 

in providing for the defence of the post, and, when it 
was blockaded by the British squadron, in preventing 
their attempts to cut off the supplies and munitions of 
war, conveyed through the interior of New York, by 
way of the IVIohawk, the Oneida Lake, and the Oswego 
river, and the connecting canals, and then transported 
over Lake Ontario to Sackctts Harbor. He remained 
at this post, till he was summoned by General Brown 
to join the army on the Niagara, after the battle of the 
twenty-fifth of July. On the fifth of August he ar- 
rived at Fort Erie, then beleaguered by tiie British 
forces under General Drummond, and assumed the 
command. 

The construction of the additional defences of the 
fort had already been commenced, under the direction 
of General Ripley, with whose arrangements he inter- 
fered no further than to press the rapid completion of 
the works. The main structure was a small unfinished 
redoubt, and in a very dilapidated condition. It was 
situated about one hundred yards from the lake, above 
which it was elevated some fifteen or twenty feet. 
Towards the water it was left exposed, though partially 
repaired ; on the right it was strengthened, and extended 
by a breastwork, to the river, where it terminated in a 
battery, and on the left a line of intrencimients and 
abattis was formed, extending to an eminence called 
Snake hill, which formed the southern angle, and on 
which a redoubt was constructed. From thence east- 
wardly, to the shore of the lake, there was a defence 
of abattis. 

The British general had fancied that the American 
army was now within his grasp, and that a single blow 



70 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

would be followed by their immediate surrender, or their 
withdrawal from the Canadian territory. Upon his ar- 
rival before the post he found its ooeujiants much better 
prepared for his reception than he expected to find them.' 
He therefore sat himself down coolly and deliberately, 
established his main camp about two miles distant, 
threw up two lines of intrenchments, supported by 
strong block houses, in front of the works, planted his 
batteries at favorable points, and contented himself 
with drawing closer the investment, but, nevertheless, 
pushing his operations with great activity. 

The American soldiers labored incessantly on the 
fortifications ; and on the seventh of August, though 
still incomplete, they were in a sufficient state of for- 
wardness to withstand an attack. From that time till 
the fourteenth instant, a constant cannonade was kept 
up, on one side or the other ; the earth shaking for miles 
around, as the thunders of the artillery boomed over 
the lake, or rolled along its shores, echoing from one 
headland to the other, and muttering among the fis- 
sures of the rocks and recesses of the forest, till they 
were lost in the distance. Several skirmishes also took 
place, in which the British were generally defeated. 
The works were considerably crippled, however, as they 
were enfiladed by one of the enemy's batteries ; but the 
garrison did not suffer materially from the fire, there 
being but seven men killed, and thirty-six wounded, 
up to the night of the fourteenth instant. 

Towards evening on the fourteenth a bustle was ob- 
served in the British lines, from which General Gaines 
rightly conjectured that the enemy designed to hazard 
an assault, and his dispositions were at once made to 



PREPARATIONS OF THE EXEMY. 71 

rc]>el it. The garrison was feeble enough, there being 
but about twenty-five hundred effective men, while the 
besieging force was nearly double that number ; but 
what they lacked in this respect was more than made 
u|i in the cheerfulness with which the officers seconded 
the wishes of the commander, the unflinching firnmess 
of the men, and the readiness with which they obeyed 
every call of duty. The main fort and its bastions 
Vv"ere placed under the command of Captain Williams, 
of the artillery : the battery on the margin of the lake, 
on the right, was commanded by Captain Douglass, of 
the engineers : the batteries in front were placed in 
charge of Captains Biddle and Fanning ; and Captain 
Towson's battery occupied the south-western angle of 
the works, — all being under the command of Major 
Hindman, chief of artillery. The first brigade, under 
Lieutenant Colonel Aspinwall, — its former commander. 
General Scott, having been wounded at the battle of 
Niagara, on t)ie twenty-fifth of July, — was posted on 
the right, and the second brigade, under General Rip- 
ley, on the left. The riflemen and volunteers, under 
General Porter, were directed to support the batteries 
in front, and the block house, near the salient bastion 
of the fort, was occupied by a detachment of infantry, 
under Major Trimble. 

Tlie preparations of General Drummond were com- 
pleted soon after nightfall on the fourteenth ; it was 
arranged that the projected assault should be made 
early on the following morning, in three columns, — 
that on the right designed to attack tiie left of the 
American works, consisting of thirteen hundred men, 
being placed under the command of Lieutenant Colonel 



72 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

Fischer, that on the left, of about tlie same number, 
under Colonel Scott, and the central column, composed 
of eight hundred select troops, under Lieutenant Colonel 
DrumnK)nd. A few hours before the assault was or- - 
dered, one of the enemy's shells lodged in a small mag- 
azine in the fort, which exploded with a deafening 
noise, shaking the solid earth, and shooting a vast pillar 
of smoke and flame up towards the sky, which ex- 
panded at the top, and rained down showers of frag- 
ments on the heads of the garrison. Not a man was 
injured, or a gun disabled, by the explosion ; but the 
British soldiers, fancying some serious injury had been 
effected, raised a loud and joyous shout. This was 
promptly answered by the Americans, and in the midst 
of the confusion, and before the smoke had cleared 
away, Captain Williams discharged his heavy guns. 
For a few moments an animated fire was kept up, and 
the air was filled with a storm of projectiles, with crash- 
ing balls, and falling shells, — but it died away again, 
and all was still. It was the silence that forebodes 
the storm — the hush that precedes the whirlwind ! 

It had been rainy throughout the day, and the rolling 
thunders of the tempest mingled with the loud roar of 
cannon, and the noise of exploding bombs. When the 
night set in, the rain continued to ftill ; heavy masses 
of clouds swept athwart the sky, curtaining the scene 
with a dark and gloomy pall ; and the fires in the ene- 
my's camp could scarcely be discerned, glimmering 
feebly through the obscure haze. The breastworks of 
Fort Erie sheltered many an anxious bosom, but the 
fire of a noble courage, tliat knew not how to falter, 
sparkled in every eye, and beamed on every counter 



THE ASSAULT. 73 

nance. General Gaines, whose dauntless intrepidity 
was never more conspiouons tlian on this occasion, was 
active in encouraging and inspiriting his men, both by 
his language and his example. Every necessary order 
was issued with promptitude, and obeyed with alacrity. 

Midnight came, — and yet there were no indications 
of an attack. Another, and another hour passed by in 
silence. Ere the next half hour was told, a low, faint 
sound was heard, like the rustling of the wind among 
the leaves of the forest. It approached nearer and 
nearer, — and the eager listeners soon caught the meas- 
ured tread of the approaching columns, enveloped in 
thick darkness, but hurrying onward with rapidity to 
the assault. The column led by Lieutenant Colonel 
Fischer was the first to reach the works. The enemy 
advanced steadily and quickly, — ons portion approach- 
ing the battery at the southwestern angle, with scaling 
ladders ; and the other advancing against the line be- 
tween it and the lake, with the desie:n of terminatinsf 
the contest, in an instant, by the decisive shock of the 
bayonet. They were allowed to approach within good 
range, when the American musketry and artillery opened 
suddenly upon them. Broad sheets of flame leaped 
from the breastworks ; shot and shell were vomited in 
torrents from the batteries ; and the dense waves of 
smoke that surged over the combatants, were lighted 
constantly by the vivid flaslies of the artillery. 

The edect was terrific. The enemy were mowed 
down in platoons, and scores were swept away at every 
discharge. They hesitated for a moment, — another 
scorching blast burst from the American batteries, — 
and they recoiled in terror and alarm. They were soon 

4 



74 bux;i?ND i>i:ndlkto\ oaim:s. 

rallied, however, and again led to the attack ; but they 
were again repulsed with fearful slaughter. The Brit- 
ish officers once more succeeded in animatins? their wa- 
vering troops for another onset. They now attempted 
to pass round the abattis by wading through the lake, 
the water of which came nearly to their arm-pits. The 
American soldiers, cheered by the presence of General 
Gaines, who had mounted his horse and hastened at 
the first alarm to participate in the dangers, and share 
the perils of the conflict, made every preparation to 
receive them. Some few succeeded in reaching the 
firm earth on the opposite side of the abattis, but it 
was only to be pierced by a dozen wounds. Many 
were drowned in the lake ; others sank exhausted by 
their wounds, beneath the water dyed with the life 
blood which they had vainly shed ; and others found 
their only safety in surrendering themselves prisoners 
of war. I'hc officers no longer endeavored to prevent 
the retreat, but all, as if animated by one impulse, 
hurried, in haste, from the scene of their disaster. 

On the other flank the enemy were equally unsuc- 
cessful. The column under Colonel Scott became en- 
tangled in the rocks near the river, on the right of the 
intrenched camp, and were delayed for a short time ; 
but when they discovered their error, and regained their 
line of march, thoy pushed on more rapidly than before. 
The sleepless vigilance of tlie besieged could not be 
taken by surprise. The assailing column were heard 
distinctly behind the ramparts as they approached, and 
Avhcn v.-ithin fifty yards of the American lines, t!iey 
cncoiH^itcrod an appalling fire that forced them to halt. 
To advanoo further was impossible. The batteries 



INCIDENTS OP THE BATTLE. 75 

before them presented a constant blaze of fire, and the 
air was full of bursting balls and missiles. In the 
meantime, the central column, commanded by Lieu- 
tenant Colonel Drummond, had advanced boldly against 
the fort ill front. A rapid, and well-directed fire was 
turned upon them by Captain Williams, but, unap- 
palled by the carnage, they succeeded in applying their 
ladders to the walls of the salient bastion. As they 
were striving to gain the parapet, their officers shouted 
to their comrades, in the column under Colonel Scott, 
to " cease firing" ! 

This proved to be a mere trick, but it succeeded for 
a moment. Tiie order was heard by Captain Doug- 
lass, and supposing that it emanated from his own su- 
perior officers, both he and his infantry support tempo- 
rarily suspended their fire. Favored by this circum- 
stance. Colonel Scott once more led on his men, — but 
they had only provoked their doom. The deception 
was now manifest, and a still more galling fire was 
sustained, which caused them again to pause. Their 
commander and a number of liis officers were cut down ; 
their loss was dreadfully severe ; they were unable to 
continue the advance, and a retreat was ordered. They 
commenced retiring slowly, but the movement termi- 
nated in a disorderly flight. 

Drummond's column, however, had achieved a slight 
advantage, yet it was brief as it was unimportant. 
The first attempt to carry the bastion entirely failed ; 
a second, and a third eflbrt was made, with sim.ilar re- 
sults. But the British commander lacked not in brutal 
courage, though sadly deficient in the more ennobling 
qualities of the gallant soldier. Under cover of the 



76 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

intf^nse darkness, just before the break of Jay, he led a 
portion of his men silently along the ditch, applied his 
ladders at a point where he was not expected, and 
mounted the parapet. With a daring intrepidity wor- 
thy of a better cause, he led his men forward to the 
charge, shrieking out in the tones of baffled rage and 
hate — " No quarter I — give the Yankees no quarter !" 
This dastard order was faithfully obeyed. A fierce and 
maddening contest took place for the possession of the 
bastion. Major Ilindman and his artillerists, with their 
supporting force, bravely stood their ground. Their 
efforts proved unavailing. Captain Williams, and a 
number of the men, were killed or mortally wounded, 
and his lieutenants, Watmough and Macdonough, were 
also severely wounded. The latter disdained to yield 
till he vras completely disabled, and then asked for 
quarter. Tliis was refused, — when, rallying his re- 
maining strength, he snatched a liandspike, and, with 
the madness of despairing humanity, strove to beat olf 
his assailants. As he held them at bay, the infuriated 
Drummond rushed forward, and shot him down with 
his own hand. But this coward act received a fearful 
retribution. The next instant an avenging bullet found 
its way to the heart of the British leader, and he fell 
beside his victim, — a horrid blasphemy gurgling, with 
the death rattle, in his throat ! 

Notwithstanding the fall of their commander, tho 
men who had effected a lodgment in the bastion, suc- 
cessfully resisted every attempt to dislodge them till 
daylight, (general Gaines then ordered up larger re- 
inforcements, and the eneiuy began speedily to fall 
back. They were now at the mercy of the American 



FINAL REPULSE OF THE ENEMY. 77 

soldiers, who had not forgotten the savage cry which 
had been the dcath-knell of many a brave spirit. Ex- 
pecting no favor, as none was merited, they had com- 
menced tumbling pellmell over the parapet into the 
ditch, when a strong reserve was descried rapidly com- 
ing lip under Lieutenant Colonel Tucker. An enfilad- 
ing fire from Captain Douglass' battery upon the ap- 
proaching column, and a few rapid and effective dis- 
charges from the guns of Captains Biddlc and Fanning, 
checked their advance. Between three and four hun- 
dred of the enemy advanced to within a short distance 
of the bastion ; but, at this moment, and while t!ie 
Americans, under the orders of General Gaines, were 
preparing for a vigorous rush upon the remnant of 
Drummond's column, a number of cartridges deposited 
in one enl of the stone building adjoining the bastion, 
caught fire, and exploded, with a tremendous roar, car- 
rying away the whole platform. The loss of the ene- 
my by the exjilosion was small in comparison with 
what they had previously sustained, but it served to 
add to their confusion, and to increase their anxiety to 
escape beyond the reach of the American guns. No 
effort was made to pursue the assault further, and a 
general retreat of the enemy now took place, as tumult- 
uous and disorderly, as their advance had been brave 
and imposing. 

The British lost one hundred and fifty-seven men 
killed, in the assault, three hundred and eight wounded, 
and one hundred and eighty-six prisoners ; besides a 
number who were drowned in the lake, and a still 
greater number who deserted under cover of the dark- 



78 EDMLTV'D PENDLETON GAINES. 

ness. The American loss "was only seventeen killed, 
fifty-six wounded, and eleven missing. 

General Drummond had indulgexl the hope that a 
single inant stroke wonkl retrieve the fortunes of the 
British arms in the peninsula, and enable him to " ride 
in triumph over all mischanee." The attack was well- 
laid, but failed in every respect. This abortive attempt 
sadly crippled his strength, and though he was rein- 
forced by two regiments on the following day, he durst 
not hazard a second assault. His batteries were en- 
larged, and the bombardment continued, tliough with- 
out any sensible effect. On the twenty-eighth of 
August, General Gaines, having been severely wounded 
by the bursting of a shell, was obliged to retire to Buf- 
falo, leaving General Rij^ley in charge of the post which 
had been thus bravely defended. General Brown re- 
sumed the command on the second of September, and 
soon after compelled the British commander to raise the 
siege, and retire to his intrenched camp beyond the 
Chippewa.* 

General Gaines did not recover from his wound in 
time to take part in the further operations of the bel- 
ligerent forces during the few months which elapsed 
previous to the conclusion of the treaty of peace. — 
Ilis gallant service in the defence of Fort Erie, did not 
go unrewarded. He was brevetted a major-general; 
Congress honored him, also, and the officers and men 
under his command, with a vote of thanks, and author- 
ized the president to procure and present him with a 
gold medal. Similar votes of thanks were likewise 

• See Memoir of General Brown, ante. 



THE SEMINOLE WAK. 79 

passed, and gold-hilted swords presented to him, by the 
legislatures of New York, Virginia, and Tennessee. 

After the termination of hostilities with Great Britain, 
bein^ retained on the peace-establishment, General 
Gaines was ordered to relieve General Jackson in the 
command of the southern district. He was engaged in 
the discharge of the duties appertaining to his position, 
in the summer of 1817, when the Seminoles, a branch 
of the Creek tribe, and the Red Sticks, or Mickasau- 
kians, also a branch of the same nation, who were 
driven from the Mississippi territory by General Jackson, 
in 1814, in connection with a number of runaway 
negi'oes, — all instigated by Nichols and Woodbine, and 
other British agents, and the Spanish authorities of Flo- 
rida, — began to renew their depredations on the south- 
ern frontiers of Georgia. In July, a large band of these 
savages and outlavrs were dislodged from a fort in which 
they had established themselves, on the A})palachicola, 
by a body of regulars and friendly Indians, under 
Colonel Clinch ; but, as their outrages were frequently 
repeated, General Gaines immediately commenced 
erecting forts for the defence and protection of the bor- 
der settlements. Fort Scott was constructed on t'le 
Flint river, a short distance above Spring Creek ; Fort 
Gaines on the left bank of the Chatahoochee, about 
midway between the Petawla and Yattayabba creeks ; 
and a third furt on the Conecuh. 

In order to put an end to the atrocities perpetrated 
by the hostile savages and their associates, orders were 
issued to General Gaines from the War Department, 
" to remove the Indians still remaining on the lands 
ceded by the treaty made by General Jackson with th«; 



80 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

Creeks ;" and, in pursuance of these instructions, on 
the nineteenth of November, he sent an officer to Fowl- 
town, with a message requiring the removal of the In- 
dians at that place. The chief in command returned 
a haughty refusal ; whereupon. Major Twiggs was 
dispatched with a strong force, to compel an observance 
of the order, and to bring the chief and his party to 
Fort Scott. He wa's attacked on the way, but suc- 
ceeded in repulsing the Indians, and arrived safely at 
Fowltown, which was found entirely deserted. On the 
thirtieth instant. Major Muhlenburgh arrived in the 
Appalachicola, with three vessels, containing supplies 
for Fort Scott, but was unable to ascend the river on 
account of the adverse winds. Lieutenant Scott v.'as 
therefore sent down to his assistance, with a boat and 
forty men. Twenty of bis men were left with the ves- 
sels, and their places in the boat were filled by sick 
soldiers and women. Lieutenant Scott then started to 
return to the fort, but on reaching the mouth of the 
Flint river, he was suddenly attacked by a band of In- 
dian warriors, under their chief Hornotlimed. The 
whole party, with the exception of six soldiers, who 
made their escape by swimming to the shore, were in- 
humanly butchered, and their scalps taken to the Indian 
town of Mickasauky, to adorn the war-pole, striped 
with red paint, which had already been erected. 

Offensive measures of the most rigorous character, 
were now rendered unavoidable. The experience ac- 
quired by General Jackson in his Indian campaigns, led 
to his being selected to conduct the war against the 
Seminoles and their allies. He arrived at Fort Scott, 
with nine hundred Georgia militia, on the ninth of 



CONTROVERSY WITH GENERAL SCOTT. 81 

March, 1818, and, as the senior oflicer, assumed the 
command. General Gaines acted mider his orders 
during the short, but decisive campaign, that termi- 
nated in the ctlectual chastisement of the savages, and 
their Spanish abettors.* The services of the former 
were invakiable to the commanding general ; he was 
always to be relied on, ever ready for any service, 
prompt, skilful, persevering and industrious. He was 
present at the reduction of Fort Barrancas, on the 
twenty-eighth of May, and immediately thereafter was 
ordered to St. Augustine, with a detachment, which 
surrendered to him without serious opposition. 

The hostile Indians being now quieted. General 
Jackson was relieved from duty, and General Gaines 
again took the command. He continued in charge of 
the southern district, till the further reduction of the 
army in 1821. He was then selected as one of the 
two brigadiers retained in service, and assigned to the 
command of the western military division. Upon the 
death of General Brown, in 1828, he was a candidate, 
with General S(!ott, for the vacant office of General-in- 
chief. The appointment, however, was conferred on 
General Macomb, then at the head of the engineer 
bureau. Pending the selection of an officer to supply 
this vacancy, a warm controversy took place between 
General Scott and himself, in relation to their respective 
priority of rank, which led to an unfortunate estrange- 
ment between them, and has since been a fruitful sub- 
ject of contention and difficulty, occasioning not more 
embarrassment to the individuals particularly concerned, 
than to the national authorities, and their mutual 

* See Memoir of General Jackson. 

4* 



82 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

friends, who are perhaps equally proud of the military 
services of both officers. 

General Gaines was continued in command of the 
western division, his head-quarters being established at 
Jefferson barracks, and on the breaking out of disturb- 
ances with the Sacs and Foxes, in May, 1881, he promptly 
repaired to the theatre of contention, having previously 
dispatched thither a large body of troops. The princi- 
pal village of the Sacs and Foxes lay in the beautiful 
peninsula between the transparent waters of the Rock 
river, and the Mississippi. In 1804, a treaty was con- 
cluded by Governor Harrison with their principal 
chiefs, by the terms of which all their lands east of the 
Mississippi were ceded to the United States ; the In- 
dians reserving to themselves the right of living and 
hunting upon the territory ceded while the same was 
unsold. A large number of the Sacs remained in the 
peninsula, and continued peaceably to enjoy the rights 
which had been reserved, till the admission of Illinois 
into the Union. The state then began to be more rap- 
idly populated, and the valuable lead mines at Galena 
attracted a vast body of emigrants. In a few years 
the Indians were entirely surrounded by the settle- 
ments of the whites. Collisions frequently occurred ; 
excesses were committed on one side, and retaliatory 
measures, far more aggravated hi character, were 
adopted on the other. 

With a view of removing the cause of dispute, the 
general government, in 1829, ordered the lands occu- 
pied by the Indians to be sold. The Sacs, under their 
celebrated chicif. Black Hawk, now insisted that the 
treaty of 180 1 was concluded by a few chiefs without 



DIFFICULTY WITH THE SACS AND FOXES. 83 

the knowledge or consent of the nation at large, and re- 
fused to give up possession to purchasers. The author- 
ities of the state were called ujjon to interfere for the 
protection of the whites, and in May, 1831, Governor 
Reynolds called out seven hundred militia, to remove 
the Indians by force. A collision had been antici- 
pated by the Executive of the United States, and Gen- 
eral Gaines had received orders to proceed to the seat 
of disturbance, if it should appear to be necessary. Ha 
instantly ordered six companies of regular troops from 
Jefferson Barracks to Rock Island, and four companies 
from Prairie du Chien. On the thirteenth of May, 
General Gaines arrived with this force at Fort Arm- 
stronof. A conference was here held with the Indian 
chiefs, but as they were unwilling to agree to any sat- 
isfactory terms, he called on Governor Reynolds of Il- 
linois, for an additional force of militia. The governor 
joined him on the Rock river, with sixteen hundred 
mounted men, on the twenty-fifth of June, and in the 
morning of the ensuing day. General Gaines took posses- 
sion of the Indian town, at the head of the united force, 
without firing a gun. or meeting a single Indian, — the late 
occupants of the village having crossed the Mississippi, 
with their women and children, on the previous night. 
General Gaines again dispatched a message to the 
Sac chiefs, proposing another conference. This was 
finally acceded to, and on the thirtieth of June they 
entered into a treaty with him and Governor Reynolds, 
by which it was agreed that they sh(Uild permanently 
remove beyond the Mississippi. Having brought this 
aflair to what, at the time, promised to be a satisfac- 
tory termination, General Gaines returned to his head- 



84 EDMUND PErvDLETON GAIXES. 

quarters. The treaty stipulations of the Indians proved 
to be delusory, however. In the following year Black 
Hawk led his warriors across the Mississippi, and re- 
fused peremptorily to retire, till he and his band were 
completely routed at the battle of the Bad- Axe, on the 
twenty-seventh of August, after which a treaty was 
concluded with General Scott and Governor Reynolds, 
in accordance with which the Sacs and Foxes removed 
to the vicinity of the Iowa and Des Moines rivers. 

Another long interval of comparative inaction now 
occurred in the military service of General Gaines. 
Little more can be said of him, during this time, than 
that all his duties as the commander of the western 
division, vvero discharged with punctuality and dis- 
patch. We bear nothing further from him of espe- 
cial moment, till the renev/al of hostilities with the 
Seminoles of Florida, in the fall of 1835. On re- 
ceiving intelligence of the massacre of IMajor Dade's 
command, and the battle of the Withlacoochee, ho 
collected all the dispo.->able troops in the vicinity of 
New Orleans, to wliich point his head-quarters had 
been removed, and immediately repaired to the seat of 
war. He landed at Fort Brooke, at the head of Tampa 
Bay, on the fourth of February, 1836, and at onco 
proceeded in search of the savages, following the route 
of the unfortunate Dade down the riq-ht bank of the 
Withlacoochee. Oii arriving at the scene of the mas- 
sacre, he caused the remains of the brave soldiers who 
had fallen victims to the wiles of the Indian warriors, 
to be decently and carefully interred. On the twenty- 
eiglith of February, he encountered a body of Indians 
not far from Fort King, but repulsed them with loss. 



THE FLORIDA WAR, 85 

Soon after this affair he entered into a parley with As- 
ceolah, or Osceola, the principal chief of tlie Seminolcs, 
which, like most obligations and pledges of a similar 
character, proved to be a mere rnse, — the object of 
which was to erain time for the removal of the women 
and children to places of security, in the marshy ever- 
glades, and leafy hummocks, in the southern part of 
the peninsula. 

Previous to these occurrences, General Scott had 
been ordered to take command of the troops, and to 
prosecute the war in Florida. He arrived at St. 
Augustine on the eighth of February, and on receiving 
authentic iziformation of the fact, and on being informed 
of the orders issued at Washington, General Gaines 
gave up the command, and shortly afterwards returned 
to New Orleans. 

His skirmish with the Indians, on the banks of the 
AVithlacoochee, terminated, in all probability, forever, the 
active service of General Gaines in the field. Incapaci- 
tated, by reason of his age, and physical inability to en- 
dure the hardships and privations of a campaign, he was 
not employed in the prosecution of the war with Mexico, 
except in forwarding sujjplies, and hastening on troops, 
to the camp established by General Taylor at Corpus 
Christi, in the summer of 1845, and in discharging the 
other duties, in connection therewith, that devolved on 
him as the commanding officer at New Orleans. Though 
yielding to the influence of advancing years, he still 
possessed the chivalric fire, and the ardent patriotism, 
which had distinguished him in his younger days. Like 
the war-horse no longer fitted to endure the shock of 
battle, he snuffed the breeze that came from the field 



86 EDMUND PENDLETON GAINES. 

of strife, aiav oiT, and when the information was re- 
ceived that General Taylor and his little band of sol- 
diers were surrounded on the Rio Grande, and cat off 
from their sujiplies, he was impatient to rush to the 
assistance of his gallant brother in arms. 

Restraining his irajuilscs, he did all that was possi- 
ble to be done, to relieve the army supposed to be in 
such imminent peril. All the regular troops that could 
be sent to the scat of war, were dispatched thither as 
expeditiously as possible. He also caused a large 
number of volunteers to be enrolled, mustered into ser- 
vice, and transported to the Rio Grande, without wait- 
ing for orders from Washington ; in this he exceeded 
his authority, and it was thought })roper to submit his 
conduct to a court of inquiry. The court assembled at 
Fort Monroe, in July, lb46, and after a full investiga- 
tion, determined that he had transcended his powers, 
but that the act was prompted by the purest and most 
praiseworthy motives. The executive and the people 
of the United States, it is needless to say, cordially ap- 
proved of the decision. Not long after General Gaines 
was assigned to the command of the eastern division, 
and established his head-quarters at New York, where 
he remained till the close of the war with Mexico, 
when he was relieved from duty at his own request. 

General Gaines yet lives, in the enjoyment of " all 
that should accompany old age," to recount the thrill- 
ing incidents of his campaigns, and " fight his battles 
o'er again." One of that class of men is he — but too 
few in number — belonging to a past regnme, who, 
though he has vindicated his title to be ranked among 
the military heroes of the nation, has never forgotten 



PERSONAL APPEARANCE AND CHARACTER. 87 

those noble qualities which characterize the gentleman 
of the old school. He is scarcely above the ordinary 
height, and slight of person, but straight as the arrow 
of an Indian warrior. He is somewhat reserved, but 
not taciturn, — courteous and urbane in his manners, 
but dignified and high-minded. Though his head is 
silvered with the frost of many winters, he is still hale 
and erect, and brave and generous, as in the hey-day 
of youth, when he rambled along the banks of the 
Yadkin ; or, in the pride of manhood, when he stood 
unmoved, gazing with an unblenched eye on the car- 
nage around him, and issuing his orders with an unfal- 
tering lip, amid the whirling balls and blazing shells, 
on the ramparts of Fort Erie I 



WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 



Among the most successful officers of the war of 
1812, was Major General William Hetvry Harrison. 
Descended from a good old revolutionary stock, and 
tlioroughly imbued, in his boyhood, with sentiments of 
the most sincere and devoted patriotism, he laid the 
foundation, at an early age, of the fame and distinction 
which he acquired in maturer years. Throughout a 
long life, — one full of interest, and replete with impor- 
tant incidents, — he enjoyed a wide-spread popularity, 
which, in the western states of the Union, was some- 
times manifested with all the fervor of enthusiasm. No 
one better deserved the respect and esteem of his coun- 
trymen, and there are few whose character has come 
brighter or purer from the ordeal, when submitted to 
that Areopagus of public opinion, whose decisions admit 
not of dispute. 

He was born at Berkeley, the family seat of his fa- 
ther, on James river, Virginia, on the ninth day of 
February, 1773 ; being the youngest of three sons. 
His father, Colonel Benjamin Harrison, was a descend- 
ant of the celebrated officer of the same name, who 
fought by the side of Cromwell for civil and religious 
liberty, but, preferring a turbulent democracy to a quiet 




WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 
Late Major General. 



HIS FATHER. 89 

despotism, opposed the ambitious projects of the Lord 
Protector, with the same stubborn vehemence with 
which lie had contended against the attempted usurpa- 
tions of the tyrant Charles. But — what is of more 
immediate value to us as Americans — he was one of 
the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and 
'• the intimate friend of Washington" ! 

Colonel Harrison took his seat in the Congress of the 
Confederation, as one of the delegates from Virginia, 
in 1774, and remained a member of that body, during 
that and the two following years. On the resignation 
of his brother-in-law, Peyton Randolph, the president 
of Congress, he was urged by a number of friends to 
take the vacant place, but declined the honor, and, on 
his nomination, John Hancock was appointed to fill the 
station. It is also stated, in connection with this circum- 
stance, that when the latter manifested some hesitation 
about accepting the office. Colonel Harrison caught the 
modest patriot in his arms, and almost carried him to 
the chair, nolens volens. He took an active part in the 
discussions and deliberations that preceded the adoption 
of the Declaration, and was the chairman of the com- 
mittee of the whole when the vote to agree to it was 
taken. There is an anecdote related of him at this 
juncture, which attests the warmth of his feelings, and 
the sterling genuineness of his patriotism. Although 
John Dickinson was openly and avowedly op])osed to 
the separation from the mother country, his honesty 
and integrity were never questioned, and his conceded 
ability secured the respect of the other members of 
Congress. Upon his urgent request, he was permitted 
to draw the second petition to the King, which was 



90 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

adopted, though with considerable reluctance. After 
the vote was taken, IMr. Dickinson could not refrain 
from expressing his satisfaction, and, at the close of {lis 
remarivs, said, that there was but one word which he 
disapproved, and that was the word " Congress^ 
Colonel Harrison sprang to his feet the instant Mr. 
Dickinson was seated, and exclaimed with emphatic 
earnestness — "There is but one word in the paper, Mr. 
President, of which I approve, and that is the word 
' Congress' .'" 

Colonel Harrison was afterwards, for several years 
in succession, a member of the Virginia house of dele- 
gates, and filled the office of speaker till the close of 
the year 17S1, when he succeeded Governor Nelson in 
the executive chair of that state. On the expiration of 
his official term in 1784, he retired to private life, but 
to the time of his death, which occurred in 1791, he 
was known and esteemed by the ablest men in the na- 
tion, and revered and honored by all classes and parties 
of his fellow-citizens. 

The subject of this biography, William Henry Har- 
rison, was early placed at Hampden-Sidney college. 
At the age of seventeen he left the institution with his 
mind well stored with classical lore, and not long after, 
in compliance with the wishes of his father, whose lib- 
eral hospitality forbade the bestowal of large fortunes 
on his children, commenced the study of medicine. 
Having completed a short preparatory course of read- 
ing, he proceeded to Philadelpliia, in the spring of 1791, 
to attend the lectures at the University, and avail him- 
self of the other facilities afforded in that city for ob- 
taining a knowledge of the profession whicli he had 



DEFEAT OF ST. CLAIR. 91 

selected. He liad but just arrived there and resumed 
his studies, when the intelligence of his father's death 
reached him, and efiectcd an entire change in his plans 
for the future. 

Notwithstanding the earnest remonstrances of his 
guardian, Robert Morris, the celebrated financier, who 
depicted, in glowing colors, the fatigues and hardships 
which lie would be compelled to undergo, he determined 
to enter the army, and with his own good sword hew 
out a way to distinction. Preparations were then mak- 
ing for another campaign against the Indians on the 
northwestern frontier, — the expedition of the previous 
year, under General Harmar, having failed of ac(Jom- 
phi^hing any decisive results. This added fire to the 
spirit of young Harrison. Washington was applied 
to, — and respect for the memory of the father, and es- 
teem for the son, whose importunities could not be dis- 
regarded, procured for the latter an ensign's commis- 
sion in the regular service. He departed immediately 
for Fort Washington, now Cincinnati, but, though he 
hurried forward with eager impetuosity, did not succeed 
in joining the army, then but a remnant of what it had 
once been, till after the disastrous defeat of the brave 
and honest, but unfortunate St. Clair, on the fourth of 
November, 1791. On joining his regiment, at Fort 
Washington, he learned the particulars of the sad tra- 
gedy which had just been enacted. The melancholy 
fate of Butler, Oldham, Hardin, and their companions, 
who had fallen victims to the wiles of a barbarous and 
cruel enemy, so far from damping his ardor, or chilling 
his enthusiasm, only heightened the fire of patriotic in- 
dignation that burned in his bosom, and increased his 



92 -WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

anxiety to take the field, and aid in inflicting a sum- 
mary punishment upon the merciless savages. 

At this time there were no settlements of conse- 
quence north of the Ohio, except those at Kaskaskia, 
Vincennes, Fort Washington, and Marietta ; and, on 
the south, between that river and the Tennessee, there 
were comparatively few inhabitants scattered over the 
territory previously Icnown as Kentuckee, V the Bloody 
Land," — for many years the battle-ground of the North- 
ern and Southern Indians. The protection, therefore, 
of the exposed frontiers, depended mainly on the regu- 
lar force of the General Government, and the militia 
of Pennsylvania and Virginia; for, though the citizens 
of this remote region were ever prompt to obey the call 
to arms, they were too feeble in numbers, to cope, un- 
assisted, with so powerful a foe. General St. Clair, 
governor of the " Territory north-west of the Ohio," 
had moved upon the Miami villages with over fourteen 
hundred men ; of this number, six hundred and thirty- 
one were killed in the fearful onslauafht of the fourth 
of November, and there were two hundred and sixty- 
seven wounded ; consequently, it was necessary to 
raise a large additional force, before offensive operations 
could be further prosecuted. President Washington 
immediately recommended a considerable increase of 
the army, and Congress adopted his suggestions. 

In the then state of the country, it required no little 
time and preparation to fit a great body of troops for 
the field ; numerous and unavoidable delays occurred ; 
and, in the meanwhile, attempts were made to conclude 
a peace with the hostile Indians. The messengers dis- 
patched by the Executive of the United States were 



CAMPAIGN UNDRR WAYNE. 93 

treacherously murdered, and negotiation was no longer 
admissible, save at tiie point of the bayonet. In the 
autumn of 1793, a force of twenty-six hundred men, 
nearly all of ^Yhom were regulars, under the command 
of General Wayne, were concentrated at an encamp- 
ment established near Fort Washington on the Ohio. 

Wiiile these preparations were in progress, young 
Harrison, who had been promoted to a lieutenancy, 
was sedulously employed in studying his profession. 
His skill and proficiency as a tactician, attracted the 
attention of the officer selected to take command of the 
projected expedition, and he was designated as one of 
his aids. Having completed his arrangements, General 
Wayne took xxp tiie line of march for the Indian coun- 
try, early in October. The lateness of the season ren- 
dered it impossible to accomplish anything till another 
campaign, anvl on his arrival at one of the tributaries 
of the Stillwater branch of the Big xMiami, he estab- 
lished himself in v.'inter quarters, and commenced or- 
ganizing and disciplining his troops. Lieutenant Har- 
rison was prominent among the young officers engaged 
in the work of instruction, and his services were flat- 
teringly noticed by the commanding general. 

In the summer of 1794, General Wayne was joined 
by upwards of one thousand mounted militia, and with- 
out delay set out in pursuit of the enemy, who, he 
learned, were in strong force at the Rapids of the Mau- 
mee. On the twentieth of August, he encountered the 
Indians, who had vainly attempted to draw him into 
an ambush, near the Roche de Bouc, on the north bank 
of the river, and defeated them with great slaughter. 
Their chief, Turkey-foot, and a large number of their 



94 . WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

best and bravest warriors, were slain ; and the remain-i^ 
der either dispersed, or sought shelter under the guns; 
of Fort Maumee, then occupied by a British garrison.! 
The brav^ery and intrepidity of Lieutenant Harrison in: 
this afiair, were conspicuous ; and in the official reporti 
of the action, his name is mentioned in terms of high 
commendation."^' AVhile the army lay in the vicinity* 
of Fort Maumee, an incident transpired, which came 
very near terminating, in all probability, the life ofl 
General Wayne, and that of his frallant aid. 

Positive instructions had been received to demolish, 
the fort occupied by the English troops, in utter disre-! 
gard of the provisions of the treaty of 1783, and in ' 
order to enable him to decide upon the propriety of an ; 
attempt to reduce it. General Wayne, accompanied by 
his suite, advanced to reconnoitre. In this daring re- 
connaissance, the general, who possessed a constitu- 
tional indifference to danger, with Lieutenant Harrison 
at his side, rode within eighty yards of the fort, and 
within point blank range of its guns. While making 
their observations, with the utmost coolness, an Eng- 
lish captain of marines turned one of the pieces upon 
them, and was about to apply the port-hre, when 
Major Campbell, the commandant of the garrison, in-- 
terposed, just in time to prevent the catastrophe that; 
would most likely have occurred. Major Campbelll 
subsequently apologized for the unofficerdike conduct t 
of his subordinate, and to his gentlemanly behavior the 

* The dispatch of General Wayne has been erroneously printed, 
without the commendatory notice of Lieutenant Harrison, and other 
officers, but it may be found in the original. 



COMMENCES HIS CIVIL CAREER. 95 

preservation of peace between the two countries may- 
be attributed. 

General Wayne did not deem it advisable to attack 
the post with the means at his command, and having 
destroyed tlie Indian villages within fifty miles of either 
side of the river, he returned to Fort Defiance, at the 
conlluence of the An Glaize and Maumee. The defeat 
wiiich the Indians had sustained was decisive ; every- 
tliing remained quiet during the ensuing winter ; and 
in July, 1795, General Wayne concluded a favorable 
treaty, at Greenville, with a number of chiefs repre- 
senting ten different nations. 

Upon the conclusion of the treaty, Harrison, now 
raised to the rank of captain, was placed in command 
of Fort Washington, and, shortly after, was married 
to a daughter of Judge Symmes, — a most amiable 
woman ; distinguished for high moral worth, for her 
piety and benevolence ; and esteemed and loved by a 
large circle of friends and acquaintances. 

Captain Harrison soon became dissatisfied with the 
idle routine of a garrison life ; there seemed to be 
no prospect that his services would be required in the 
field ; and he longed for more active employment. 
Accordingly he resigned his commission, and in 1797, 
at the age of twenty-four, commenced his civil career, 
as secretary of the territory, under Governor St. Clair. 
His talents and many estimable qualities had already 
brought him into favorable notice, and the duties of 
his ofHce were discharged with so much promptitude 
and fidelity, that he was regarded as one of the ablest 
young men in the territory. His popularity steadily 
increased, and in 1799, he was elected as the first del- 



96 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

egate in congress. On taking his scat, in December, 
of that year, he was appointed, upon his urgent solici- 
tation, chairman of the committee on the public lands, 
— the only instance, it is stated, in which a delegate 
was so distinguished. 

The improvement of the existing land system had 
long been a favorite object with him. Many of its 
features were wholly inconsistent with the genius and 
spirit of democratic institutions, and calculated to re- 
tard the growth and prosperity of the great West. 
Among other provisions equally odious in their charac- 
ter, was one forbidding the sale of land by the govern- 
ment, in quantities of less than four thousand acres, 
except where there were fractions on the banks of large 
streams. Harrison had the forecast to discover, what 
a boundless field would be opened for the enterprising 
youth and industrious laboring classes of the Atlantic 
states, by tiio removal of this obstacle to the settlement 
of the territory, the development of the resources which 
nature had so lavishly bestowed upon it, and its rapid 
advancement to wealth and greatness. Through his 
instrumentality, aided by the efforts of other able meai- 
bers of both houses, who united with him in procuring 
this reform, a law was enacted, requiring one half of 
the public lands remaining unsold, to be divided into 
sections of six hundred and forty acres each, and the 
remaining moiety into sections of three hundred and 
twenty acres ; tin? old system of forfeiture for non-pay- 
ment was abolished, and payments were directed to be 
made, in future, one quarter down, and the remainder 
in two, three, and four years, with a further forbear- 
ance of one year on the last payment, if desired. 



GOVERNOR OF IXDIANA TERRITORY. 97 

This was not all that Ilarrisoa wished to efloct ; but 
an important point was gained. Emigrants flocked 
into the territory by scores and hundreds, and the grati- 
tude of the citizens, both the old inhabitants, and the 
new-comers, who had been benefited by his exertions, 
never failed to follow his footsteps as those of a bene- 
factor and friend. — Such was the estimation in which 
he was held by his constituents, that he was solicited, 
on all hands, to take the place of Governor St. Clair. 
In reply to every intimation of this kind, Harrison 
steadily refused to permit any effort to be made, to su- 
persede the war-worn veteran, whose only fault, if fault 
it be, was, that fortune had been chary of her favors to 
him, when her smiles, doubtless for some wise purpose, 
were showered upon those not more able, not more de- 
serving, nor more prompt in the performance of every 
duty. The desire of Harrison's friends was soon grati- 
fied, however, in his appointment by President Adams, • 
in IbOO, as the first governor of the newly erected ter- 
ritory of Indiana. Though deprived, by his position as 
a delegate, from taking part in the general legislation 
of the country, his sound judgment and sterling worth 
had secured him an enviable reputation, and when he 
left Congress, he was followed by the regard and cordial 
good wishes of his associates. 

Shortly before his leaving the Capital, a circumstance 
occurred, which deserves to be mentioned, as illustrat- 
ing the purity of motive, and honesty of purpose, which 
marked l>is public conduct. His father-in-law. Judge 
Symmes, was the proprietor of the jMiami purchase ; 
and previous to obtaining his patent, he had made a 
number of sales. It was doubtful whether the rights 

6 



98 AVi;,l.tA.M IIi:.\RV HARRISON. 

thus acquired \vere of any value, even in equity ; but, 
upon the introduction of a bill in Congress providing 
for the settlement of the purchase, although the inter- 
ests of Judge Symmes, and, indirectly, his own, were 
jeoparded, Harrison went before the committee having 
the bill in charge, and successfully urged the insertion 
of a clause ampl}^ protecting the claims of the pur- 
chasers. 

In 1801, Governor Harrison entered upon the dis- 
charge of his official duties, at Vincennes, an old mil- 
itary and trading ])ost, on the left bank of the AVabash, 
which was settled by the French aboiit the year 1730. 
Though invested with extraordinary powers, the otfice 
to which he had been appointed was no sinecure. Be- 
sides the settlement at Vincennes, there were but two 
others, of importance, in the whole territory, out of 
which M'as afterwards formed the states of Indiana and 
Illinois, viz. ; Clarke's Grant at the falls of the Ohio, 
and the settlement extending along the Mississippi, 
from Kaskaskia to Cahokia. The white population did 
not exceed five thousand souls, and they were entirely 
surrounded, on the north and west, by numerous bands 
of Indians, who were either openly and avowedly hos- 
tile, or wanted but a favorable opportunity to manifest 
their hatred and ill-will. 

To provide for the security of the settlements in the 
territory, however remote, or widely separated ; to over- 
awe the savages, or hold them in check ; to encourage 
immigration ; and to promote, in all things, the happi- 
ness and welfare of the inhabitants, — were the objects 
to which Governor Harrison unremittingly devoted his 
time and attention. In addition to his other duties, ho 



VARIED SERVICES. 99 

acted as commissioner of Indian affairs, in which ca- 
pacity he concluded fifteen treaties, and extinguished 
the title of the aborigines to more than seventy million 
acres of land — then, for the most part, an unbroken 
wilderness, but now dotted all over with the abodes of 
wealth and contentment, and teeming with a thriving 
and industrious population. Frequent journeys were 
performed by him, along the wild forest paths, and 
miserable traces, which led from one station or settlement 
to another. Dangers were fearlessly encountered ; fa- 
tigue never disheartened him. He cheerfully shared 
the privations of the settlers ; partaking with them of 
tlie rudest cheer, or, seated on a hewed block before a 
roaring fire, listening attentively to tales of trial and 
hardship, and offering the kind word of sympathy and 
encouragement. Wrapt in his blanket, or enveloped 
in the folds of a bear skin or buffalo robe, he slept, too, 
as soundly and sweetly on the bare earth in the hunt- 
er's lodge, or the puncheon floor of a log cabin, as upon 
the beds of down in his father's mansion. 

In 1802, Ohio was admitted into the Union as a 
state, and Wayne county, — afterwards the territory, 
and, still later, the state of Michigan, — was then at- 
tached to the territory of Indiana. The duties of Gov- 
ernor Harrison were thus rendered still more arduous. 
He was relieved from this additional care, however, in 
1805, when Michigan was erected into a separate ter- 
ritory. The country filled up so rapidly, that it be- 
came necessary, in a few years, to relieve him yet fur- 
ther, and in 1809, a territorial government was formed 
for Illinois. 

Many years elapsed after the conclusion of the treaty 



100 WILI-IAM HENRY HAXIRISOJC, 

of peace, in 1783, before Great Britain entirely aban- 
doned her expectations of reestablishing, at some future, 
and not very remote day, her authority over her revolted 
American colonies. It was customary for her writers 
and politicians to underrate the importance, and sneer 
at the pretensions of the young republic, till they saw, 
in the rapidly-extending commerce and growing pros- 
perity which followed the restoration of peace and tran- 
quillity, unmistakable indications that the daughter 
would soon be no mean rival of the mother country in 
the race of nations. To check these germs of great- 
ness, ere they should bud and blossom, was now the 
favorite object of English statesmen. As no pretext 
existed for open hostilities, resort was had to the low 
arts of diplomacy — to intrigue and cunning ; and amid 
the moral and political corruption, which, at that era, 
polluted the atmosphere of St. James, plans were con- 
cocted, whose atrocity must ever stand out in bold re- 
lief on the page of impartial history. 

Disregarding tiie provisions of the treaty of 1 783, the 
British authorities retained possession of the military 
posts northwest of the Oliio, and to these, and similar 
establishments in the Canadas, agents were sent, to 
suborn, and tamper with, the savages on the northern 
frontiers of the American Union, and incite them to 
commit acts of hostility upon the persons and property 
of the settlers who had found their way into the rich 
valley of the Mississippi. It was the policy of Wash- 
ington, — and, after him, of Adams, Jeiterson, and 
Madison, — to purchase the lands belonging to the In- 
dian tribes, required by the increasing white population 
of the country, at a fair equivalent ; to furnish them 



ENGLISH INTRIGUES. • 101 

the means of civilization ; to provide for them the re- 
straints of well-or(lcre:l aiii wholesome regulations ; to 
enlvindle new desires, and implant new motives in their 
breasts; to enlighten their ijiinds and Christianize their 
.hearts. England, on the contrary, forgetting the elo- 
qnent and indignant denunciations of her Chatham, 
and careless how she sullied the national escutcheon, 
already stained by many a foul blot, supplied them with 
arms and ammunition, — with blankets, tobacco, and 
*' fire-water," — not to induce tliem to cultivate har- 
mony and good-will with their neighbors, the citizens 
of the United States ; but to minister to their most 
depraved appetites, and arouse the most vindictive pas- 
sions of their natures. She asked them, not to lay 
•aside the implements of death, and engage in the pur- 
suits of peace ; but invited them to continue their bar- 
barous warfare, and glut their vengeance, to the full, 
with the tomahawk and scalping-knifc I 

Under the auspices of Simcoe, and other agents of 
Great Britain, immediately after the peace, a combi- 
nation was formed among the Northwestern Indians, 
the object of which was to prevent the Americans from 
extending their settlements beyond the AUeghanies. 
The border inhabitants were constantly harassed by 
the irruptions of the savages ; scenes of bloodshed and 
murder were of frequent occurrence ; and when efforts 
were made to chastise the perpetrators of these out- 
rages, they found in England a fast and firm friend, 
whose assistance, though not openly rendered, proved 
of essential service to her allies. Her influence was felt 
in the defeat of Harmar and St. Clair, and when the 
mounted volunteers under the gallant Wayne scattered 



102 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 

the savages in confusion, on the banks of the IMaumee, 
they fled for protection beneath the guns of a fortress 
over which floated the red cross of St. George. 

The defeat of the Indians by Wayne was a severe 
lesson, and it was long remembered. Fortunately, too, 
for our country, — who needed only a season of peace, 
and repose from "war's alarms," to advance with rapid 
strides to the high destiny before her, — the revolution- 
ary spirit had, at this time, crossed the Atlantic, and 
the watch-fires of liberty were blazing on the conti- 
nent of Europe. Alarmed for the stability of her in- 
stitutions at home, England had no time to spend in 
courting the favor of the North American savages, 
even though her machinations promised to terminate in 
the restoration of " the brightest jewel of her crown." 
In November, 1794, three months after Wayne's vic- 
tory, Mr. Jay concluded his commercial treaty, in which 
it was stipulated that the western posts should be sur- 
rendered by the first of June, 1796, which was accord- 
ingly done ; and in the summer of 1795, as we have 
seen, the treaty of Greenville was made with the In- 
dian tribes. — The quiet thus restored was deceitful, and 
temporary in its duration. 

The treaty of Mr. Jay provided, among other things, 
for compensation for British spoliations on American 
commerce, growing out of the war with France ; yet 
the ratifications of that instrument had scarcely been 
exchanged, when outrages of the same character, but 
greater in degree, were committed. Taking advantage 
of the distracted state of affairs on the continent, the 
enterprising citizens of America had extensively en- 
gaged in the carrying trade ; and their commerce had 



SEIZURES BV THE ENGLISH. 103 

increased with so mvicli rapidity, that the jealousy of 
England was again awakened. Largvi quantities of 
American provisions were also shipped to Europe, and 
especially to France, and to her possessions in the West 
Indies, the prices paid for which, during the continu- 
ance of hostilities, afforded handsome profits ; but this 
interfered, very materially, with the determination of 
England, by means of her maritime supremacy, to 
starve the French people into an abandonment of their 
republican notions, and to prevent it, she caused block- 
ades to be declared, which were enforced by no suita- 
ble naval power, and orders to be issued, in defiance of 
the law of nations, requiring neutral vessels to be seized 
though not carrying articles contraband of war. 

Remonstrance on the part of the authorities of the 
United States, was of no avail. The example set by 
England was followed by France — every act of injus- 
tice on the one side being succeeded by a still more 
odious one on the other. The treaty of Amiens, in 
1S02, afforded the Americans a brief respite ; but, on 
the renewal of the war, in the following year, seizures 
and condemnations of our vessels became more fre- 
quent than ever. England joined the coalition formed 
to establish Continental despotism on a firmer basis, 
and restore the Bourbon dynasty to the throne which 
they had disgraced ; and she stopped at nothing to ac- 
complish her purposes. Not content with watching 
the ports of France, she sent her privateers and vessels 
of war, under her pirate flag, to hover on our coast, 
and plunder our commerce. ITcr navy having been 
seriously reduced, in men, by the long continued war- 
fare in which she had been engaged, she likewise re- 



104 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

sorted to the impressment of American seamen, to fill 
up the complements of her crews. Large numbers of 
sailors were taken from onr merchantmen : and, to 
conclude these high-handed offences, the frigate Chesa- 
peake was despoiled of a portion of her crew, on the 
twenty-second of June, 1807. 

In the meantime the emissaries of Great Britain 
had been busy among the savages on the Northwest- 
ern frontier. So complete and irrefragable were the 
proofs furnished to Congret^s of this fact, that, in 1797, 
a law was passed to prevent the tampering of foreign 
agents with the Indians, which imposed severe penal- 
ties and punishments. This law was easily evaded, 
and it was ' therefore ineffectual. The Indians were 
invited to the British posts ; they were flattered and 
caressed, and loaded with gifts and favors ; their minds 
were soured ; and no means were left untried to keep 
up a constant strife between them and the settlers. It 
has often been said, that the interference of British 
agents in this particular existed only in imagination, 
and that the Indians were provoked to hostilities by 
acts of violence committed by the Americans. Doubt- 
less, there were isolated cases of wrong and injustice, 
which cannot, and should not, be palliated or excused ; 
but it is idle to suppose, that the settlers generally 
would have so causelessly endangered their own secu- 
rity, and so recklessly jeoparded the lives of those who 
leaned on them for protection, and looked up to them 
for sympathy and love. 

Governor Harrison was not an indifferent, nor, from 
his position, an uninterested spectator, of these events. 
The movements of the British emissaries did not escape 



TAMPERING WITH THE INDIANS. 105 

his attention ; lie repeatedly eautioned his government 
against their designs, and labored incessantly to coun- 
teract them. He endeavored in everyway to conciliate 
the savages, but his efforts were often frustrated by the 
unseen power so long felt in these border troubles. 
When the attack on the Chesapeake was made known 
in the United States, it excited a general sentiment of 
indignation. He shared deeply in this feeling, and em- 
braced the first public opportunity to make known his 
opinions. In his speech delivered on the eighteenth of 
August, 1807, before the General Assembly of Indiana 
Territory, at their regular session, he referred, in em- 
phatic terms of condemnation, to the conduct of the 
British agents who were secretly instigating the Indians 
on tlie frontier, and, avowing himself in favor of im- 
mediate hostilities, alluded to the affair of the Chesa- 
peake, as being necessary, perhaps, to arouse the Amer- 
ican people from their lethargy, and awaken them to 
the importance of teaching other countries and gov- 
ernments, that " a nation of freemen," to quote his 
own language, " are not to be insulted with impu- 
nity" ! 

France, at length, ceased her unjust and oppressive 
measures; but England refused to abandon her posi- 
tion. Embarfjo and non-intercourse were tried in vain. 
The commercial relations of the country suffered more 
and more. Jefferson and Madison both desired peace ; 
yet, notwithstanding their pacific inclinations, affairs 
daily grew worse, and war seemed inevitable. While 
matters were fast verging towards the crisis, the agents 
of Great Britain were actively engaged among the 
Northwestern Indians. Governor Harrison watched 



106 WILLIAM HKNRY HARRISON. 

their movements with a vigilance that never slumbered, 
and sought by every means in his power to defeat their 
plans and combinations, and, at least, to prevail upon 
the Indians not to take up arms in favor of either 
party, in case hostilities should commence between 
England and the United States. 

In the winter of 1810-11, crowds of Indian war- 
riors collected around the British posts in Upper Can- 
ada, — their war-plumes streaming from their scalp- 
locks, and their cheeks disfigured with the war-paint ; 
and when the sweet notes of the blue robin, the wel- 
come harbinger of spring, were heard echoing through 
the western forests, they went forth upon their bloody 
mission. Nature's hymn of melody was hushed, as 
their shrill war-whoop resounded through valley and 
woodland, and the heavens became resplendent with 
the How of blazing ricks and cabins. 

Meanwhile Governor Harrison had succeeded in par- 
tially conciliating the Kickapoos, and some other tribes, 
and had effected the purchase of a large tract of land 
from them. It was the anxious desire of the General 
Government, to secure, at every hazard, the neutrality 
of the Indian tribes, in the event of a collision with 
Great Britain. This was regarded as of paramount im- 
portance ; for the sad experience of the past had shown 
how much they were to be feared and dreaded, particu- 
larly when the military strength and resources of the 
nation should be employed in a contest with a power- 
ful opponent. Governor Harrison faithfully reflected 
the views, and carried out the wishes of those whoiii 
he represented, and in the summer of 1811, a council 
was held at Vincennes, for which extensive prepara- 



COUNCIL AT VINCENXnS. 107 

tions ^V(?re maJe, and at which the leading, and most 
influential chiefs, of the Nortlnvcstern tribes, were 
present, by his invitation. The object of this assem- 
blage was, to conclude a more general treaty, and com- 
plete the efforts which had been made to induce the 
Indians to remain neutral. 

Among the forest warriors who came to Vincennes, 
in pursuance of the summon^ of Governor Harrison, was 
Tecumseh'', the Shawano chief, — conspicuous, then, for 
his tall and manly frame, his earnest and thrilling elo- 
quence, his hostihty to the whites, his boldness, bravery, 
and sagacity, and his feats of daring in the chase and 
valor on the war-path ; and afterwards celebrated, for 
the ascendency he acquired over his red brethren, and 
for his steadfast devotion to the English cause. Deep 
rankling in his heart there had long existed a feeling 
of inveterate hatred towards the American people, which 
had been carefully nurtured and cherished. Several 
years previous, he had formed the project of uniting the 
tribes, north, south, and west of the United States, in 
a combination, to refuse to sell any portion of their re- 
maining lands, to resist every effort to dispossess them, 
and, if possible, to drive back the white settlers from 
the Mississippi valley. Motives of ambition may have 
been mingled with his aspirations, and it is not improb- 
able, that he looked forward to the day when a grand 
native confederacy should be established Jjeyond the 
Alleohanies, with himself as its leader and head. 

The project of this " forest-born Demosthenes" was 
a vast one, and lie devoted himself with untiring zeal 
and pertinacity to its accomplishment. His exertions 
were powerfully seconded by his brother, Tensquata- 



103 WILLIAM HENRY IIARRISOJf. 

way — so well known as the Shawnee Prophet, or Im- 
postor. The latter was blind of one eye, and lacked 
the oratorical powers of Tecumseh ; but, claiming to 
receive direct revelations frOm the Great Spirit, which? 
though always possessing a singular resemblance to the 
pubhc harangues of his brother, he imparted to his sav- 
age hearers, — and availing himself of that superstitious 
reverence, that, in a rude and uncultivated people, ren- 
ders them so impressible, so credulous, and so easy to be 
governed and directed, by the practice of rites and in- 
cantations which are said to have tlirilled and terrified 
the hearts of those who witnessed them — ^lie acquired 
an influence second only to that of the chieftain whose 
ambitious designs he hoped to further. Tecumseh had 
already visited most of the Northwestern tribes, and 
Vv'as only waiting for the anticipated war with England, 
to marshal his bands and lead them out under her ban- 
ner, hoping wdth her assistance to accomplish the great 
object he had so much at heart ; and he now appeared 
in the council held at Yincennes, not to bury the toma- 
hawk and smoke the calumet of peace, but to remon- 
strate against the purchase from the Kickapoos and 
other tribes, and hurl the gauntlet of defiance. 

What excited the indignation of Tecumseh, more 
than all, was the claim of the white man to superiority, 
and the arrogance, as he termed it, evinced in calHng 
the Indians his children. Upon the opening of the 
council, Governor Harrison kindly handed him a chair, 
saying, at the same time, in a courteous, yet dignified 
tone, " Your father offers you a seat." " My fa- 
ther /" — exclaimed the chief, while he drew his form 
up to its full height, and his eye flashed with the fire 



SPEECH OF TECUMSEH. 109 

i 

of insulted priile — " Mr/ father ! — the Sun is my 
father, and tlic Earth my mother ; she gives me suste- 
nance, and I will rest on her bosom I" Thus speaking 
he seated himself upon the ground, with as lofty and 
commanding an air, as if the green sward beneath him 
])ad been the throne of the Csesars. 

After the preliminary business of the council was 
disposed of, Tecumseh rose, and in a strain of impas- 
sioned eloquence, which lias rarely been equalled, and 
never, perhaps, surpassed, by any native orator, reviewed 
the conduct of the whites, and the wrongs of the In- 
dians, from the time when the former first disembarkeil 
on the Atlantic coast, to that moment — insisting that 
the land was given by the Great Sjiirit to the red men 
in common, and that no portion of it could be sold 
without the consent of all. His speech was well cal- 
culated to inflame the prejudices, and arouse the pas- 
sions, of his savage listeners, and vv'hen ho had con- 
cluded. Governor Harrison commenced a reply. While 
the latter was speaking, Tecumseh, carried away by 
his emotions, sprang to his feet, and, grasping his tom- 
ahawk, boldly charged the governor with having uttered 
a falsehood. Twenty or thirty of the warriors followed 
the example of the chief, and instantly arrayed them- 
selves in a hostile attitude. 

Governor Harrison was no " weak-heart;"* nor was 
he to be intimidated by menace. Anticipating a sud- 
den outburst of ill-temper, as he had discovered soirie 
unfriendly indications, he had posted a guard of sol- 
diers within call. At the signal, they darted forward 
to take part in the threatened struggle. But Tecum- 

* The expressive term among the Indians for " coward." 



110 WILLIAM HEMIY IIARRISO^^ 

sell was as pf)litic as he was brave ; he saw that the 
time had not yet come for him to strike ; and he wisely 
avoided a conflict. The council w^as broken up, how- 
ever ; uiid all liope of securing the neutrality of the 
Indians was abandoned. The savages returned to their 
homes in the wdlderness, and shortly after renewed 
their outrages, murdering the frontier settlers, plunder- 
ing and burning their homes, and destroying or carry- 
ing off large quantities of property. 

Governor Harrison's decision was soon taken. Hav- 
ing obtained permission from the government to march 
into the Indian country with a military force, he made 
his preparations w^ith his accustomed promptness and 
energy. Orders were sent to Colonel Boyd, of the 4th 
infantry, then at Pittsburgh, to join him forthwith with 
his regiment, and a .=;trong militia force, part of whom 
^vcre mounted, were imbodied in Kentucky and Indi- 
ana — the citizens gladly responding to the call of pa- 
triotism — and marched to Vincennes. Leaving that 
place at the head of about fourteen hundred men, con- 
siderably less than one half being regulars, the gover- 
nor moved up the AVabash. About fifty miles above 
Vincennes ho constructed a stockade fort, afterwards 
kfiown as Fort Harrison, and then directed his course, 
\vithout loss of time, to Tippecanoe, the Pro])het's 
Town, wdiich lay on the west bank of the Tippecanoe 
river, not far from its junction with the Wabash. 

On approaching the Indian town, on the sixth of 
November, Governor Harrison proceeded slowly and 
cautiously ; as the enemy's warriors were frequently 
seen flitting through the woods in advance of the army, 
and their scouts were discovered posted on the hills in 



BATTLE OF TIPPECANOE. Ill 

every direction. Within a short distance of the vil- 
lage, he was met by the principal chiefs — Tecumseh 
liimself being absent on a mission to the southern 
tribes — who, in reply to Harrison's demand of satisfac- 
tion for the outrages which had been perpetrated, pro- 
posed that an amicable conference should be held on 
the following morning, and that, in the interim, nei- 
ther party should commit any act of hostility. Dur- 
ing the day he had made repeated efforts, without suc- 
cess, to bring the Indians to a parley, and he still dis- 
trusted their sincerity ; but, being willing to grant them 
favorable terms of peace, if his demands were complied 
with, he acceded to their request. 

Orders were now issued to encamp for tlie night. 
Majors Clarke and W. Taylor were sent forward to se- 
lect a suitable position, and on their report Governor 
Harrison marched his command to an elevated knoll 
of dry oak land, rising in the midst of the open prairie, 
about one mile northwest of the villaije. The horses 
were picketed, the guards posted, and every preparation 
made for the bivouac. Having partaken of their even- 
ing meal, the Americans lay down upon the bare earth, 
to refresh their wearied limbs. From his long ac- 
quaintance with the character of Indian warfare. Gov- 
ernor Harrison was fam.iliar with the arts and devices 
of the savages ; and apprehending treachery, and know- 
ing, that, if attacked at ail, it would be under cover 
of the darkness, he required his men to sleep on their 
.arms, and directed that the order of encampment should 
be the order of battle. 

. The troops were arranged in two columns, separated. 
on the left, one hundred and eighty yards, and about 



112 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

half that distance on the ri^ht. The front line con- 
sisted of the first battalion of the 4th infantry, under 
Major Floyd, flanked, on the right, by two companies, 
and on the loft by one company, of the regiment of 
Indiana militia, under Colonel Bartholomew ; and the 
rear line was composed of the second battalion of tha 
4th infantry, under Captain Baer, flanked by four com- 
panies of the Indiana militia, under Lieutenant-Colonel 
Decker. Two companies of Indiana and Kentucky rifles, 
under General Wells, were thrown out to cover the left 
fl.ank, and Captain Spencer's troop of Indiana rifles was 
posted on the right. Two troops of dragoons were sta- 
tioned in rear of the left flank, and one in rear of the 
front line, under Major Daviess. The left front and left 
rear angles, — that flank being the most exposed to an 
attack, — were turned by a portion of the regular troops. 
A strong guard was also detaileJ, each man of which 
was instructed to be jirompt and vigilant. In the event 
of an assault, the dillerent corps were ordered to main- 
tain their respective jiositions till they were relieved ; 
and the cavalry were directed to parade on foot, with 
their swords and pistols, and wait for orders. 

These dispositions being completed, Governor Har- 
rison lay down among his men, having his horse near 
him, saddled, and in readiness for him to mount at a 
moment's warning. Hour after hour went by in si- 
lence. The camp fires gleamed brightly in the distance 
till long after midnight, when they were suffered par- 
tially to die away. The cold chilling wind moaned 
dismally as it swept through the encampment, gently 
lifting the locks of many a tired sleeper who had looked 
for the last time on the setting sun, and fanning into a 



ATTACK OX THE LEFT. 



113 



bris-liter irlow the smnuldorinsr embers of the watch- 
fires. The beams of the young moon struggled ah-nost 
vainly to pierce through the thick veil of clouds, from 
which a drizzling rain descended that hissed and sput- 
tered as it fell on the heated ashes. The hour of dark- 
ness which precedes the dawn had nearly passed, when 
the governor rose from his rude couch, and ordered the 
reveille to be beaten. He then sat down before the fire, 
and commenced a conversation with some of his offi- 
cers. While thus engaged, the stillness was suddenly 
broken, by the sentinels discharging their pieces, on the 
left of the encampment, and a fierce and hideous yell 
that roused every man from his slumbers. 

Wistful and inquiring glances were at once turned 
towards the quarter from whence the alarm proceeded"; 
the cry, " To arms I — To arms I" was raised on every 
side ; and the wild slogan of the savage bands, rising 
higher and higher as the conflict deepened, was echoed 
far down the valley of the Wabash. For a few mo- 
ments the encampment presented a scene of confusion; 
but the active exertions of Governor Harrison, Colonel 
Boyd, and other officers, soon restored order and disci- 
pline. 

At first the attack was partially successful. The 
stealthy approach of the enemy was not observed until 
they were in the immediate vicinity of the pickets. It 
was their intention to creep up to the sentinels as close 
as possible, and then to spring upon them, and kill 
them, before they could fire ; but, on finding that they 
were discovered, and the alarm given, they gave a deaf- 
ening yell, rattled their deer hoofs — by which their 
movements in battle were guided — and rushed furl- 



114 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

onsly on tlio guard posted on the left flank. The latter 
gave way almost instantly, and the whole brunt of the 
onset was sustained by Captain Barton's regulars, and 
tlie mounted rifles of Captain Guiger, who occupied 
the left angle of the rear line. In every other part of 
the encampment the fires had already been extinguished, 
in obedience to the directions of Governor Harrison ; 
— but, on this flank, there was not sufficient time, 
and tlie troops were exposed to the murderous aim of 
the Indian warriors, without even the protection af- 
forded by the darkness. Nevertheless, they held their 
position gallantly, amid the storm of bullets that whis- 
tled incessantly through their ranks, till they were re- 
inforced by two companies from the centre of the rear 
line, ordered to their support by the governor. 

Such was the desperation evinced by the savages, at 
the outset of the action, that a number of them forced 
' their way into the centre of tlio encampment. Here, 
for a brief space, the contest was foot to foot, and man 
to man. Fire brands were hurled, and rifles and mus- 
kets clubbed. The scalping knife glistened momenta- 
rily, as it cut the air in its descending course ; and a 
dull crashing sound was heard, as the tomahawk sank 
into the quivering brain of some unfortunate victim. 
Louder and louder rang the Indian war-whoop ; but 
the American soldiers — their confidence now reo^ained — 
returned shout for shout, and yell for yell. Vengeance 
was not long deferred. Not one of the enemy who 
had entered within the lines was suffered to escape : — 
all were cut down, uttering, as they fell, in shrieking 
tones, their bitter and unrelenting curse upon the white 
man. 



FORTUNATE CIRCUMSTANCE. 115 

A sliort distance in front of the American left, there 
was a small group of stm-Jy oaks, which aflorded shel- 
ter to a number of the most skilful marksmen amonir 
the assailing band, who poured a galling and intense 
fire, mingled with rapid flights of arrows, from their 
concealment. Major Daviess instantly requested per- 
mission to charge upon the cover with his cavalry. 
Governor Harrison granted the request, and the major 
orderetl his bugles to sound the charge. His manly 
tones rung cheerily out on the night air, as he called 
upon his men to follow. Nobly did they second him. 
The charge was made, and the Indians scattered like 
the leaves of the forest before the fury of the autumn 
blast ; but it was the last bold stroke of him, whose 
eloquence is yet remembered, and whose memory is 
still carefully treasured, among the people of the West. 
By his side, too, fell Colonel White, of the Indiana 
militia, like him, mortally wounded, in that sangTiinary 
fray. Disheartened by the loss of their leader and 
many of their comrades, the cavalry fell back, and the 
Indians recovered the ground, opening a still more de- 
structive fire on their opponents. As the dragoons re- 
tired. Captain Snelling promptly led forward his com- 
pany of the 4th infantrv, and again drove the savases 
from their shelter with the bayonet. 

In the meantime, a heavy fire had been opened on 
the companies of Captains Spencer and Warwick, on 
the right of the line. The former, and his two lieu- 
tenants, were killed, and Captain Warwick was mor- 
tally wounded. All immediate danger being over on 
the left flank. Governor Harrison hastened to the right, 
to encourage the men to remain firm, and maintain the 



IIG AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISOX. 

gi-ound till daylight. At the first alarm, ho had fortu- 
nately monntcd the horse nearest hini, without wait- 
ing lor his own to be brought up, which was well 
known to the enemy. The dark eyes of many a red 
warrior glared fiercely, as they were turned hither and 
thither tln-ough the encampment, in search of the favo- 
rite steed of the governor. As he dashed to the right, 
he was accompanied by his aid, Colonel Owen, who 
rode a horse similar in color to that on which he had 
been mounted the previous day. A shower of rifle 
balls fell around them. Colonel Owen was killed, and 
the governor's cravat was pierced by a bullet, that 
chanced not to injure "his person. 

In passing to the right flank, the governor found the 
company of Captain Robb, which had fallen back at 
the commencement of the attack, in the centre of the 
camp. Leading them to the support of Spencer's and 
Warwick's companies, he strengthened this part of the 
line, and i)y his presence encouraged the men to more 
animated exertions. A warm fire was now kept up 
till the early dawn, in front, on both flanks, and partly 
in rear of the encampment ; the sharp crack of the 
rifle, and the prolonged rattle of musketry, mingling 
with the shouts and cheers of the American soldiers. 
Governor Harrison well knew, as the great father of 
the English drama had written years before, that " ad- 
vantage is a better soldier than rashness," and he did 
not hazard the safety of his command, though sufl'er- 
ing severely from the heavy fire, by any offensive move- 
ment, till the light of day enabled him to ascertain the 
position and numbers of the enemy. 

But whpn the morning broke, a general charge was 



THE INDIAN VILLAGE BURNED. 117 

ordered. Tho left wing, consisting of five companies 
of the 4th infantry, and a party of dragoons, led by 
General Wells, — and the right, consisting of the re- 
maining companies of the 4th infantry and cavalry, 
and the mounted riiles and militia, — moved rapidly 
upon the })ositions occupied by the savages. The latter 
made no further effort to continue the fic^ht. Their 
desperate bravery had proved of no avail against the 
disciplined valor ■ and persevering courage of the Ameri- 
can troops. Hotly pursued by the gallant soldiers of 
Harrison, they fled in dismay to the neighboring swamps 
and thickets, in whose impenetrable recesses they at 
length found a secure retreat. The Prophet's town 
was entirely abandoned by its late occupants. Having 
collected his v.'ounded, and buried his dead, Governor 
Harrison advanced with his forces to the village, which 
he ordered to be burned. The surrounding district was 
also laid waste, and he then returned into the settled 
country. 

The battle of Tippecanoe was one of the bloodiest 
engagements recorded in the annals of Indian warfare. 
It was bravely fought and bravely won. The cautious 
foresight, the prudence and vigilance of Governor Har- 
rison, alone saved his little army from destruction. His 
loss in killed and wounded, was one hundred and eighty- 
eight ; that of the enemy was supposed to be about the 
same. 

Tecumseh,as has been mentioned, was absent at the 
time of this engagement. Had he been present, j)er- 
haps the result might have been different. When the 
particulars of the disaster reached him, he affected to 
regard it as of little moment, and always spoke of it, 



118 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

as the "unfortunate transaction that took place be- 
tween the wliite people and a few of his young men" ; 
yet it is very evident that this untoward oocurrence 
preyed deeply on his spirits, since it tended, probably 
more than any other single circumstance, to the defeat 
of his plans. The result of the action intimidated 
many of the tribes who were preparing to join his con- 
federacy, and they immediately sent deputations to 
Governor Harrison to sue for peace. 

The general assembly of Indiana territory passed a 
resolution, at the next session after the battle of Tip- 
pecanoe, complimenting Crovernor Harrison in the high- 
est terms, and the Legislature of Kentucky also testi- 
fied, in a similar manner, their approbation of " iiis 
cool, deliberate, skilful, and gallant conduct." — Thus 
was laid the foundation of that military reputation, 
which secured him the regard and esteem of his coun- 
trymen, and elevated him, in after times, to a memo- 
rable distinction among the great men of tlie Nation. 

Another effect of the battle of Tippecanoe was soon 
witnessed. The tone of the ])ublic press became more 
bold and warlike, and the public temper was inflamed 
to the highest degree. Doubts as to the necessity of a 
war with England were speedily transformed into set- 
tled convictions. After a long and tedious negotiation, 
in the summer of 1811, reparation was offered for the 
attack on the Chesapeake ; but (Ireat Britain aban- 
doned not one of her objectionable positions, nor ceased 
the piratical plunder of our commerce, so long stimu- 
lated and encouraged by Lords Liverpool and Castle- 
reaich. Forbearance could no longer bo regarded as a 
virtue ; nor was peace desirable, when it could only be 



DECLARATION OF WAR. 119 

preserved by the sacrifice of national honor and dignity. 
War was therefore declared, on the eighteenth of June, 
1S12, and pubhcly proclaimed by President Madison on 
the following day. 

The declaration of war found Governor Harrison ac- 
tively engaged in the discharge of his duties as gover- 
nor of the territory of Indiana, and in his endeavors to 
secure the neutrality of the Northwestern savages. 
The general sentiment of that section of the country 
would then have applauded his selection as the com- 
manding officer of the forces destined to operate in that 
quarter ; but the appointment was conferred on William 
Hull, governor of the territory of Michigan, an officer 
who had served with credit and ability during the war 
of the Revolution. 

The campaign of 1812 was signalized by General 
Hull's invasion of Canada, in July, and his humiliating 
surrender, at Detroit, in the following August. When 
the tidings of this event were made known in Ohio, 
Kentucky, and Tennessee, they were scarcely credited. 
Subsequent information confirmed the rumor, however, 
and the intelligence produced a spontaneous outburst 
of indiofnation. To retrieve the tarnished honor of the 
country, was the first impulse of every heart. An ir- 
repressible feeling of enthusiasm pervaded all classes. 
The people rose, in a mass, like the upheaving of the 
ocean. Places of rendezvous were appointed, and the 
hunters of the west flocked in crowds around the na- 
tional standard — all animated by one motive, and influ- 
enced by one desire. They were cheered, too, by the 
approving smiles, and encouraged by the kind words 
of their wives and mothers, their sisters, daughters, and 



120 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

sweet-hearts, Avhose hands were constantly employed 
in furnishhio' them with clothins: and other necessaries 
for the march. Such was the alacrity displayed in 
responding to the call to arras, tliat whole companies 
were frequently enrolled, and equipped, in a single 
day! 

In Ohio, the most patriotic exertions were made by 
Governor Meigs, to fit the militia of that state for the 
field. In Kentucky, an unusual degree of ardor was 
manifested. The fire of '76 was rekindled in the bosom 
of the veteran Shelby. Infected with the spirit pre- 
vailing among their constituents, several members of 
Congress enrolled themselves as privates, and cheer- 
fully shouldered the rifle or musket. Henry Clay, the 
eloquent' advocate of the war on the floor of Congress, 
though not under arms, ajipeared at the musters, and 
addressed the volunteers in fervid and impassioned ap- 
peals to their patriotism, that thrilled the hearts of 
those who heard him. Large numbers of militia were 
also imbodicd, in ^^irginia, and in the western part of 
Pennsylvania. In Tennessee, likewise, the utmost 
eagerness to take the field was exhibited by the hardy 
yeomanry, who were doubtless inlluenced by the no- 
ble ex:am})le of General Jackson and his patriotic 
division. 

In a few weeks, about eight thousand men were col- 
lected at various points on the Ohio river and izi its 
vicinity. The selection of an officer to take command 
of the army, was attended with considerable difficulty; 
but it was finally determined, at a sort of military cau- 
cus, at which Isaac Shelby, Judge Todd of the Su- 
preme Court of the United States, Mr. Clay, and other 



APPOINTED A MAJOR GENERAL. 121 

Icadin!^ men, were present, that Governor Harrison 
shonlJ be commissioned a major general by brevet, by 
Governor Scott, of Kentucky, and temporarily invested 
with the command. This was accordingly done, and 
General Harrison immediately entered upon the per- 
formance of his duties. His militaiy life had been an 
irregular one, and his experience, therefore, was ex- 
tremely limited ; yet he found himself placed at the 
head of a numerous body of troops, under such dis- 
heartening circumstances, and in a season of despond- 
ency and gloom. To add to his embarrassments, he 
discovered, on examination, that everything was in 
confusion. Men there were in abundance; but they 
were deficient in arms and ammunition, and poorly 
provided with supplies of every kind. Still, he did not 
lack the moral courage necessary to sustain him at so 
important a crisis, but labored iudefatigably to correct 
what had been done amiss, and to secure the efiicient 
action of the army placed under his orders. 

The capture of Detroit, and the consequent occupa- 
tion of all the important posts in the territory of Mich- 
igan, and about the head of Lake Erie, by the British 
troops, removed every restraint from the savages on ths 
frontier, who poured down from their northeiyi hives in 
torrents. The security of the border settlements against 
their murderous incursions was the first object to be at- 
tained ; and in order to accomplish this ell'ectually, it 
was necessary to move without delay to the relief of 
the frontier posts, — particularly Fort Harrison, on the 
Wabash ; and Fort Wayne, at the confluence of the 
St. Mary's and St. Joseph's, v/hich form the IMaumee, 
or Miami of the Lakes, as it was originally called. It 

6 



122 WlLtrAM HENRY HARRISON. 

was determined to penetrate the Indian country in two 
columns ; one, under General Harrison, being ordered 
to rendezvous at Cincinnati andUrbanna, and the other, 
under General Hoplcins, of the Kentucky militia, at 
Vincennes. 

General Harrison put his troops in motion from Cin- 
cinnati, on the twenty-ninth of August, and reached 
Piqua on the thirtieth instant, with about twenty-five 
hundred men. Here he completed his final arrange- 
ments, and received his military stores ; and, on the 
sixth of September, he resumed bis march for Fort 
Wayne, where he arrived on the twelfth, to the great 
joy of the garrison, which consisted of only seventy 
men. The post had been for several days invested by 
a large body of Indians who resorted to every strata- 
gem and device to induce the garrison to surrender, 
and, failing in this, made repeated attempts to carry 
the fort by assault. On heai-ing of the approach of 
General Harrison, the savages retreated precipitately, 
after destroying everything outside the works. 

On his arrival at Fort AVavne, General Harrison 
forthwith organized two expeditions to lay waste tho 
Indian villages. Colonel Wells, of the 17th infantry, 
was dispatched on the fourteenth of Septonber, with 
his reginilnt, and that of Colonel Scott of tlie Ken- 
tiicky militia, and two hundred mounted ri/les, against 
the Potowatomie town on the upper St. Joseph, which 
disembogues into Lake Michigan. Another detaeh- 
m.ent, commanded by General Payne, consisting of 
two Kentucky regiments, under Colonels Lewis and Al- 
len, and one company- of mounted men, marched 
against the Miami villages. Both expeditions were 



DEFENCE OF FORT HARRISON. 123 

successful. Nine Indian towns, which had been aban- 
doned by the inhabitants, on the approacii of the Amer- 
ican troops, were utterly destroyed ; the v/igwams 
and wooden huts were burnt, and the growing corn 
Cut up. 

Meanwhile, the column under General Hopkins, 
Mdiich had rendezvoused at Vincennes, had moved to 
the relief of Fort Harrison. This post was occupied 
by Captain Z. Taylor, of the 7th infantry, with a fee- 
ble garrison of fifty men, not one half of whom were 
effective. On the night of the fourth of September, it 
was assaulted by between four and five hundred In- 
dians, who succeeded in firing one of the block-houses, 
in which a large quantity of spirits was stored. The 
flames spread with great rapidity, and the garrison were 
fast giving way to despair, when Captain Taylor 
directed the roofs of the adjoining barracks to be re- 
moved. This was quickly accomplished, and the fire 
prevented from extending to the other buildings in the 
fort. Animated by the heroic example of their com- 
mander, and reassured by the admirable coolness and 
presence of mind which he had exhibited, the soldiers 
then engaged in the defence of the post, with a courage 
akin to desperation. The assailants failed to make 
any further impression, and after daylight on the morn- 
ing of the fifth, the American fire became so destruc- 
tive, that they moved out of range. They lingered 
near the post during the day, but retired early on the 
j following morning, though they still hovered in the vi- 
I cinity, keeping watch on the principal roads, cutting 
ofT the communications with the fort, and committing 
their depredations through the surrounding country. 



I!f4 AtiLLlAM HEXRY HAftRrSoW. 

The long-continued anxiety of the garrison was re- 
lieved on the sixteenth of September, by the arrival of 
Colonel Russell, v.'ith eleven hundred men, and a few 
days later General Hopkins came up with the remain- 
der of his column. Preparations were now made for 
an expedition against the Peoria villages, on the Illi- 
nois river, and other Indian towns on that stream and 
the Wabash, which had been determined on previous 
to the march of the troops from Vincennes. It was 
agreed that Colonel Russell should proceed directly 
across the country, with his corps of Kentucky rangers, 
and a party of mounted rifles under Governor Ed- 
wards of IlHiiois Territory, three hundred and sixty 
men in all ; and that General Hopkins, with the main 
body, should advance by a more northern route, and 
effect a junction with him at the Peoria towns. An- 
other detachment, of eighty men, under Captain Craig, 
was ordered to move up the Illinois, and join them at 
the same place. 

Colonel Russell left Fort Harrison with his command 
on the seventh of October, and General Hopkins com- 
menced his march on the fifteenth instant. The route 
pursued by the latter lay through a pleasant champaign 
country, and his force was strong enough to set all op- 
position at defiance. But the men were totally undis- 
ciplhied and unaccustomed to restraint ; and on the 
fourth day out refused to proceed any further. The 
remonstrances and entreaties of the general produced 
no effect, and he was compelled to follow his refractory 
troops, in their retrograde march to Fort Harrison. 
Colonel Russell, however, continued his course to tlio 
Illinois river. Though disappointed in not meeting 



INDIAN TOWNS DESTROYED. . 125 

General Hopkins, he persevered in his enterprise, and 
destroyed one of the principal villages of the Peorias, 
called Pamitaris' town, together with their winter stock 
of provisions. The Indians were pursued into a swamp 
in the vicinity where they had fled for shelter, — Colonel 
Russell and his men wading for several miles up to their 
waists in water, — and upwards of twenty of them 
were killed on the bank of the river. After the de- 
struction of the town, the detachment returned to Fort 
Harrison, where they arrived on the twenty-first of 
October. 

In November, General Hopkins made a more success- 
ful foray. Leaving Fort Harrison on the eleventh in- 
stant, at the head of about twelve hundred men, he ]Dro- 
ceeded up the Wabash, and destroyed the Prophet's town, 
and a large Kickapoo village near it, with the store of corn 
provided by the savages for the coining winter. The 
Winnebago towns on Ponce Passu creek were also de- 
stroyed by a detachment vinder Colonel Butler. 
. About the same time. Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, 
of the 19th infantry, was dispatched from Greenville, 
I with a party of six hundred men, against the Indian 
I towns on tlie Mississinewa river, one of the tributaries 
of the Wabash. On the seventeenth of November, he 
I surprised a village inhabited by Delawares and Mi amis, 
li captured thirty-seven prisoners, and killed eight of the 
!' enemv's warriors. The town, and two others in the 
I neighborhood, were then burned, and the party en- 
ji camped for the night. Just before daylight, the next 
li morning, they were attacked by a party of Indians 
If three hundred strong. A desperate contest was kept 
;; up for nearly an hour, when the enemy were driven: 



126 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

off by a charge of cavalry, leaving forty of their best 
and bravest warriors dead on the field. The Americans 
lost eight men killed, and about thirty wounded. An- 
other attack was anticipated, as Tecurasch was under- 
stood to be in the vicinity with four or five hundred 
warriors, but reinforcements soon coming up from 
Greenville, the detachment completed the destruction 
of the towns on the river, and returned without moles- 
tation. 

These repeated incursions had the desired effect. 
Frequent hostilities afterwards arose and engagements 
took place, but these were confined to small parties of 
volunteers and similar bands of savages ; exempted 
from the irruptions of the Indians, the border settle- 
ments continued to enjoy, for a long period, a degree 
of tranquillity which they had never before witnessed. 

After the return of the troops sent out by General 
Harrison, from Fort Wayne, it was his intention to 
advance towards Detroit, and recover the territory oc- 
cupied by tlie British forces, as soon as he found his 
means adequate to the object. His plans were tempo- 
rarily disarranged by the arrival of Brigadier General 
Winchester, who had originally been designated for the 
command of the northwestern army, with large rein- 
forcements from Ohio and Kentucky. General Harri- 
son accordingly relinquished the command, and set out 
on his return to Indiana territory, accompanied by a 
considerable force of mounted men with which he de- 
signed to break up the Indian towns in that quarter. 
It subsequently appeared, that President Madison was 
ignorant of his bi-evet appointment, and of the general 
desii-e of the western people that he should be placed 



DISPOSITION OF THE TlLVOfS. 127 

in command, at the time the orders to General Win- 
chester were issued. General Harrison had not pro- 
ceeded far on his return, when lie was overtalcen by an 
express bearing a commission as brigadier general in the 
regular army, together with instructions requiring liimto 
take command of the forces on the northwestern frontier. 

General Harrison returned to Fort Wayne, and re- 
sumed the command, on the twenty-third of Septem- 
ber. Arrived here, he learned that General Winches- 
ter had marched on the previous day, for P'ort Defiance, 
on his vv^ay to the Rapids of the Maumee, the place 
fLxed upon for the general rendezvous preparatory to 
the contemplated movement for the recovery of Michi- 
gan, vrith four hundred regulars, a brigade of Ken- 
tucky militia, and a troop of horse, — in all two thou- 
sand men. He then proceeded to Fort St. Mary's to 
make further [^reparations for the campaign, and dis- 
patched Colonel Jennings down the Au Glaizo, with a 
detachment, having in charge a quantity of supplies for 
General Winchester, whose men had but a limited stock 
of provisions. 

The march of General Winchester was impeded, not 
only by the natural obstacles of the wet and marshy 
country through vvhich he was compelled to pass, but 
also by a series of annoying skirmishes with the ad- 
vanced parties of a force lying in and near Fort Defi- 
ance, consisting of two hundred British regulars and 
one thousand savages, which was destined for the cap- 
ture of Fort Wayne. Making his way through the 
numerous difficulties that retarded his progress, and 
forcing the enemy to retire down the river as he ad- 
vanced, he reached Fort Defiance on the thirteenth of 



128 



WILMAM IIEXRY IIARRISO.'T. 



September, where he was joined by the detachment un- 
der Colonel Jennings. AVhile on his way, he had sent 
an express to General Harrison, informing him of the 
situation of his troops, and the harassing warfare kept 
up with the enemy. The latter arrived at the fort on 
the third of October, with additional reinforcements, but 
returned again, on the ensuing day, to the settled coun- 
try, to bring the remainder of the troops, composing the 
centre and right wing of his army, into the field. Gen- 
eral Winchester remained at Fort Defiance in com- 
mand of the left winar. 

Before leaving the fort, General Harrison directed 
General Tupper to proceed down the river with the 
Ohio mounted men, about one thousand strong, and 
drive the enemy from the Rapids. The command of 
General Tupper consisted of raw and inexperienced 
militia, and, though he made every effort, he was una- 
ble to comply with the orders he had received. In con- 
sequence of some misunderstanding between himself 
and General Winchester, he soon after returned with 
the Ohio cavalry, to Urbanna, whence he was ordered 
forward, with the centre of tlie northwestern army, 
which was composed of one regiment of regulars, and 
the Ohio volunteers and militia, to Fort M' Arthur. 
About the same time, the right wing, consisting of the 
Pennsylvania and Virginia brigades, under Generals 
Crooks and Leftwicli, was advanced to Sandusky. 

On his arrival at Fort JNF Arthur, General Tapper 
organized another expedition to proceed to the Rapids. 
He left the fort on the tenth of November, with six 
hundred men, carrying five days' rations in their knap- 
sacks. Oji the evening of the thirteenth instant, he 



WINTER CAMPAIGN. 129 

arrived within thirteen miles of the Rapids, and sent 
an ufficer in advance to reconnoitre. It was ascertained 
that Fort Maumee, and the settlement, were still occu- 
pied by the British and their savage allies, and their 
boats and vessels were discovered in the stream below. 
General Tupper made several unavailing attempts to 
cross the river, and then endeavored to decoy the enemy 
over. In this he was more successful ; a large party 
of Indians crossed the river, whom he attacked and 
routed ; but, on account of the failure of his provisions, 
he was soon obliged to return to Fort M' Arthur with- 
out accomplishing the object of the expedition. On the 
thirteenth of December, he conducted another detach- 
ment to the Rapids, between fifteen hundred and two 
thousand strong. On this occasion he encountered 
about three hundred British regulars and seven hun- 
dred Indians, on the right bank of the stream, a few 
miles above the Rapids. These he attacked and com- 
pletely routed. The enemy left one hundred of their 
number on the field, and many were killed while at- 
tempting to swim across the river. Shortly after this 
affair, the British evacuated the post and retired to 
Maiden and Detroit. 

In the meantime, General Harrison, whose head- 
quarters were established at Franklinton, had labored 
unceasingly, in connection with Governor Meigs, to 
complete his preparations for the projected winter cam- 
paign. It was designed that the army should advance, 
in three divisions, from Fort Defiance, Fort M'Arthur, 
and Sandusky, to the Rapids of the Maumee, where 
they were to receive their supplies of ordnance and 

provisions. A feint was then to be made upon Detroit, 

g* 



130 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

when tlie troops were to cross the river and invest Fort 
Maiden. 

The army under the orders of General Harrison 
nominally consisted of ten thousand men. But little 
over six thousand of these were effective, and many of 
the latter number were undisciplined and inexperienced. 
All were poorly clothed and worse fed. The efforts of 
the commanding general were unwearied and untiring, 
but he encountered obstacles and difficulties at every 
step. The army rendered an important service in hold- 
ing the Indians in check, yet they were unable to move 
forward, and General Harrison was warmly censured, 
by those who were unacquainted with the real state of 
things, for his inactivity. A simple statement of the 
position of affairs on this frontier will be his best de- 
fence. — The enemy had the command on Lake Erie, 
and it seemed almost impossible to furnish the troops in 
this remote region with the supplies that they needed, 
and without which it would have been mere fool-hardi- 
ness to advance. It was necessary to transport the ord- 
nance and heavy stores over the AUeghanies, and down 
the Ohio, and thence they were hauled, over land, hun- 
dreds of miles, along blazed forest paths and miserable 
trails, across half-frozen swamps and through trackless 
forests, to the banks of the Maumee. 

Against such embarrassments. General Harrison 
struggled almost hopelessly, yet as it proved in the se- 
quel, successi'ully, notwithstanding that his plans were 
frequently thwarted, and his measures disconcerted, by 
the War Department. In January, 1813, Dr. Eustis 
was succeeded by General Armstrong as Secretary of 
War. The latter had imbibed strong prejudices against 



DIFIICULTIES AND EMBARRASSMENTS. 131 

a militia force, and entertained a marked dislike towards 
General Harrison, who, — though possessing the confi- 
d(^nce of r\Iadison himself, — never knew what it was 
to be cordially sustained by the executive officers of the 
government, while he remained in service. 

While General Harrison was busilv engasfed in dis- 
tributing the supplies, and organizing the reinforce- 
ments, as they arrived, an event took place, which, it 
has been truly said, " clothed Kentucky in mourn- 
ing." — The left wing of the army, under General 
Winchester, remained at Fort Defiance, on the site of 
which they constructed a new fort, named, after the 
geiieral in command. Fort Winchester, till November. 
Having constructed a number of pirogues, for the trans- 
portation of their baggage, they moved down the river 
about six miles, to camp No. 3, where they were de- 
layed until the eighth of January, 1813 — suffering 
greatly, in the meantime, for the want of clothing and 
])rovisions. Orders were then issued for tlie advance. 
The weather was exceedingly inclement, the river 
blocked up with ice, and the ground covered with snow 
to the depth of twenty-seven inches ; — yet the bravo 
Kentuckians, of whom General AVinchester's command 
was almost exclusively composed, harnessed themselves 
to sleighs on which they placed their baggage, and per- 
formed the weary march of twenty-seven miles, to the 
Rapids, in two days. Immediately after his arrival at 
this point, the general received a message from the in- 
habitants of Frenchtov/n, a small village situated on 
the left bank, and near the mouth, of the river Raisin, 
' informing hiin that a large body of British and In- 
dians were about to make a descent on tiiat place, 



132 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISOrf. 

and urgently entreating him to hasten to their assist- 
ance. 

Sickness, and the expiration of the terms of service 
of the volunteers, had reduced the strength of his col- 
umn to but little over eight hundred men ; and Gene- 
ral Winchester hesitated to place any portion of this 
small command, within a single day's march, — as tha 
Detroit river was then frozen over,— of the British 
forces concentrated at Maiden. His officers, however, 
t^nanimously, and earnestly, advised a compliance with 
the request ; and, impelled by motives of humanity, 
without waiting to communicate with General Harri- 
son, and, indeed, contrary to his own better judgment, 
he detached Colonels Lewis and Allen, wuth about five 
hundred men, on the seventeenth of January, instruct- 
ing them to proceed to Presque Isle, and there await 
his arrival with the remainder of the column. 

At Presque Isle, Colonel Lewis, who had been placed 
in command of the detachment, learned that an ad- 
vanced party of British and Indians were already in 
possession of Frenchtown. He therefore determined to 
hasten forward and attack them. The march was re- 
sumed, through the ice and snow, and at three o'clock 
in the afternoon of the eighteenth instant, he arrived 
on the southern bank of the river, opposite to the vil- 
lage in which the enemy, about five hundred in num- 
ber, under the command of Major Reynolds, were 
posted. The stream being bridged with ice, Colonel 
Lewis formed his men for action, and advanced stead- 
ily to the further shore. A warm contest ensued, which 
was terminated only by the darkness. The enemy were 
forced from their position, and driven nearly two miles. 



MASSACRE ON THE RAISIN. 133 

into the woods, under a continual charge. Colonel 
Lewis had twelve men killed and fifty-five wounded. 
The enemy's loss was supposed to be far more severe, 
as fifteen Indian warriors were found on the field, — 
thougli it could never be ascertained with certainty. 

Colonel Lewis was joined on the twentieth instant 
by General Winchester, with two hundred and fifty 
men, — the latter having previously advised General 
Harrison, then at Lower Sandusky, of the advance to 
Frenchtown. General Harrison received the dispatch 
of General Winchester on the nineteentii of January, 
and, though deeply chagrined at this interference with 
the general plan of his operations, he set out imme- 
diately for the Rapids. His inspector general, Captain 
Hart, was dispatched to General Winchester, with or- 
ders to maintain the position to which he had advanced 
at all hazards. On the twenty-third instant, a rein- 
forcement of three hundred men, under Major Cot- 
greves, took up the line of march for Frenchtown, and 
on the same day General Harrison followed, with an- 
other corps, three hundred and sixty strong. 

It was all too late ! The catastrophe which Gene- 
ral Harrison feared had already occurred ; — the blow 
had been struck that desolated so many homes, and 
widowed so many hearts, in the fair state of Kentucky. 
— Early in the morning of the twenty-second. General 
Winchester was attacked by an overwhelming force of 
British and Indians, numbering at least fifteen hundred 
men, with six pieces of artillery, under Colonel Proc- 
tor and the chiefs Round-Head and Split-Log. His 
men maintained a stout resistance — fighting bravely 
for hours, exposed to a most murderous fire. At length, 



134 AVILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

after ono half their number were either killed or 
woumled, the remainder — a sadly diminished band — 
surrendered themselves prisoners of war, upon the pledge 
of the British commander to protect them from Indian 
violence. 

The pledge vv'as basely violated. Another, and still 
darker feature, was added to the worse than brutal 
warfare waged on the part of the English government. 
On the day after the engagement, Colonel Proctor re- 
turned to Detroit, leaving between fifty and sixty 
wounded prisoners at Frenchtown, who were cruelly 
butchered bv his savage associates, — a half-breed, who 
held a high commission in the Royal service, boast- 
ing, in the presence of the British oflicers, that the In- 
dians were " excellent doctors^'' ! The houses in which 
the unfortunate victims perished were set on fire, and 
their bodies consumed. Other prisoners, not wounded, 
"were murdered in cold blood ; the rites of sepulture 
were denied to their remains, and those of their com- 
rades who had fallen in the action ; and their bones 
were left to whiten in the wintry storm that howled its 
requiem above their resting place. Some perished by 
the wayside, on the march to Detroit, from the incle- 
mency of the weather ; others sank beneath the toma- 
hawk of the savage. The survivors, — few in number, — 
to the lasting dishonor of a nation whose sovereign re- 
warded the oflicor, who connived at, or tolerated these 
abuses, with the commission of a brigadier general, were 
stripped and plundered, and subjected to the grossest 
indignities and outrages. 

General Harrison was three miles in advance of the 
Rapids, hurrying rapidly on with his reinforcements, 



BRUTAL CONDUCT OF THE ENEMY. 135 

when ho received the intellisrence of this sad disaster. 
Selecting a picked corps of one hundred and seventy 
men, he detached them to the assistance of the fusfi- 
tives, but few of whom made their escape from the 
field of battle, in consequence of the great depth of 
snow. He also dispatched a surgeon, with two com- 
panions, provided with money, under a flag of truce, to 
attend the sick and wounded prisoners of General Win- 
chester's command. One of the party was murdered 
by the Indians, and the others were robbed, and other- 
wise inhumanly treated, by both British and savages. 
After suiiering for several months in confinement, hav- 
ing been transferred from one dungeon to another, they 
were finally set at liberty in Quebec. 

Had General Harrison consulted his first impulses, 
he would have hastened forward with his whole dispos- 
able force, to avenge the massacre at Frenciitown. 
Doubtless, it would have been better, had he done 
so — provided he could have been successful, which is 
not entirely free from doubt — and he would then have 
escaped the censure bestowed on his conduct, unde- 
served and ungenerous though it was. But the roads, 
miserable as they were in the most favorable Aveather, 
were covered with three feet of snow, and almost im- 
practicable for artillery ; it was not then known that 
Proctor had himself retired ; the force of the enemy 
was greatly exaggerated ; and the unanimous advice 
of his officers counselled iiim to fall back without de- 
lay. It might be improper to call him a bold man, — 
l)ecause he did not court danger unnecessarily. Yet 
he did not lack bravery; he was not timid; nor was 
his courage like " fire in a flint which will not show 



136 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

without knocking." He was firm, resolute, and un- 
fi inching, wlicn occasion required, — he was only not 
rash, not reckless. lie was responsible for the success, 
or failui'e, of the whole campaign ; the security of the 
entire frontier depended on his army alone, — the only 
barrier against the swooping torrent of Indian warriors 
who wanted but the opportunity to precipitate them- 
selves on the defenceless settlements, in terror and 
blood. 

In conformity with the advice of his officers. Gene- 
ral Harrison fell back to Carrying river, about midway 
between the Sandusky and Maumee, on the twenty- 
third of January, in order to effect a junction with the 
troops in the rear, and to cover the transportation of 
artillery, and other stores, from Upper Sandusky. Hav- 
ing been reinforced by two Ohio regiments, promptly 
dispatched to his assistance by Governor Meigs, lie 
again advanced, in the month of February, to the Rap- 
ids, at the foot of which, and nearly opposite Fort 
Maumee, he commenced the construction of a fort, 
named, in honor of the governor. Fort Meigs. 

The advance of General Winchester to Frenchtown, 
and the consequent defeat and surrender of his com- 
mand, entirely deranged the plans of General Harrison 
for the winter campaign. The term of service of a 
large portion of his militia force shortly after expired, 
and it became necessary to call out new levies before 
anything further could be attempted. He therefore 
returned to the interior of Ohio, to procure additional 
troops from that state, and Kentucky. In neither was 
there any lack of patriotism exhibited, — but, in the lat- 
ter, where there was scarcely a family that did not 



SIEGE OF FORT MEIGS. 1S7 

mourn the loss of some near friend or relative, one gen- 
eral outcry was raised, for vengeance upon the perpe- 
trators of that bloody massacre on the banks of the 
Raisin. 

The legislature of Kentucky, at its winter session, 
authorized Governor Shelby, who had been elected the 
year previous, to take command in person of three 
thousand militia ; and Colonel Richard M. Johnson, 
also of that state, was empowered by the War Depart- 
ment to raise a regiment of mounted men — which troops 
were desisfned for the reinforcement of General Harri- 
son in the spring. 

Early in April, General Harrison, now promoted to 
the rank of major general by brevet, and appointed to 
the command of the eighth military district, learned 
tliat extensive preparations were being made by Gene- 
ral Proctor and Tecumseh, for a combined attack on 
Fort Meigs. He immediately returned to the fort, and, 
in connection with the engineer officers, Captains Wood 
and Gratiot, labored indefatigably, night and day, to 
put it in a more favorable posture of defence. The 
fort was an octagon, containing about nine acres, and 
vras situated on the rising ground overlooking the river 
bottom. At each corner there was a strong block- 
house, " with cannon planted so as to rake each front 
and command every elevated point near the fort" ; the 
block-houses were connected by strong picketings fifteen 
feet high, against which a breastwork of clayey earth 
was thrown up, on either side. There were several long 
batteries also constructed, which were well garnished 
with cannon. The means of defence were ample, with 
the exception of the garrison, which consisted of only 



138 ^^^LLIAM henry Harrison. 

twelve hundred men, the greater pnrt of whom were 
volunteers. The regulars Avere the 19th infantry, un- 
der Lieutenant Colonel Miller ; and the volunteers 
preseiit, composed the Pennsylvania brigade comrnan^led 
by General Crooks. The term of service of the Penn- 
sylvanians had expired, but they generously volunteered 
to remain and defend the fort. All were animated by 
the best spirit, and determined on holding the work as 
long as it proved tenable ; and, when their defences 
failed, to sell their lives dearly. 

On the twenty-eighth of April, one of the patrolling 
parties reported that the enemy were ascending the 
river from the lake, and that they were in great force 
about three miles below. A few British and Indians 
were also discovered on the opposite bank of the river, 
who were driven off by the fire of an eighteen-pounder 
gun. A brigade of Kentucky militia, twelve hundred 
strong, under General Green Clay, were, at this time, 
approaching the fort from Cincinnati, and a dispatch 
was now sent to quicken their march. 

It was the intention of Greneral Proctor, who com- 
manded the British force, which consisted of between 
nine and ten hundred regulars and Canadian militia 
and twelve hundred Indians, to make a dash at the 
American works, and carry them, before the garrison 
could be reinforced. The wary foresight of General 
Harrison frustrated his design. Disappointed in his 
original purpose, the British commander sat down de- 
liberately before the fort, and began his prej:>arations for 
a regular investment. The light troops, and a part of 
the Indians, were thrown across the river, with direc- 
tions to occiipy the most favorable positions for annoy- 



FORTUNATE ESCAPE. 



139 



ing the garrison, while General Proctor superintended 
the erection of batteries on the left bank. The firo 
from the fort prevented the speedy completion of the 
batteries, as the enemy were obliged to perform most 
of the work under cover of the night. A warm firo 
was kept up on the garrison by their skirmishers, but 
it produced little effect. No inconvenience, of especial 
importance, was felt by the Americans, except the want 
of water ; the well in the fort not being completed, it 
was necessary to procure it from the river, after night- 
f;i!!, which was attended with considerable risk, as bands 
of Indians were constantly lying in wait to intercept 
stragglers. 

General Proctor completed his batteries, and mounted 
his guns, on the first of May, and immediately opened 
a vigorous fire from one twenty-four, one twelve, and 
one six-pounder, and one howitzer. The guns in the 
fort were effectively served, in return. The enemy 
produced no sensible impression, although General Har- 
rison made a fortunate escape. During the cannonade, 
he was seated on a bench attentively watching the play 
of the guns, when a ball came plunging down into the 
fort close beside him. AVith Napoleon at Montereau, 
he raidit have said, " The bullet which is to kill me, 
is not yet cast !" — The bench on which he was sitting, 
was shivered in pieces, but he himself received no 
injury. 

An additional battery was opened, on the third in- 
stant, at a distance of two hundred and fifty yards 
from the fort, on the south side of the river. On this 
a mortar was planted, from which a number of shells 
were thrown. The Americans turned their guns upon 



140 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

it, liowever ; and their fire told so well, that it was 
soon silenced. After the opening of the fu'o from the 
mortar battery, the garrison was for the first time sum- 
moned to surrender. General Proctor assured the 
American commander, in his summons, with the most 
bare-faced effrontery, that he was actuated solely by the 
desire of sparing the effusion of blood ; that successful 
resistance was out of the question against so numerous 
a force ; and that a prompt surrender could alone save 
the garrison from the horrors of Indian warfare. The 
reply of General Harrison was such as became him: — 
while he had the honor to command an American fort, 
he said, it should never be surrendered, and, least of all, 
to General Proctor and the savage hordes with whom 
he fraternized. 

The enemy now pressed the siege with increased 
zeal, and the garrison suffered far more than they had 
previously done, from the fire of the Indians on the 
right bank of the river, who climbed the tall forest trees, 
and, sheltered by the intertwining branches, rained their 
rifle balls upon the heads of the American troops. A 
brisk fire was maintained on both sides, till the morn- 
ing of the fifth instant, when a small party from the 
brigade of General Clay, then descending the river 
from Fort Defiance, arrived at Fort Meigs, with the 
information that the column to which they belonged 
M^as rapidly approaching. General Harrison's decision 
was soon taken : he resolved on making an effort that 
day to raise the siege, and, having matured his plans, 
dispatched a messenger to General Cla}^, with orders to 
land eight hundred of his men on the left bank of the 
river and destroy the enemy's batteries, while a sortio. 



APPROACH OF REINFORCEMENTS, 141 

should be made from the fort upon those on the other 
side. The remainder of General Clay's brigade were 
direeted to descend the right bank of the stream to the 
fort. 

General Harrison's plan was a skilful one, and would 
have been attended with complete success, had it not 
been for the " superabundant bravery" of the Kentuck- 
ians. In compliance with his orders, General Clay 
detached eiglit hundred of his best troops, under Colo- 
nel Dudley, who landed his men in good order, and ad- 
vanced boldly upon the enemy's batteries, in three col- 
umns. The British were surprised at the suddenness 
of the attack, and abandoned their guns almost instantly, 
leaving them in possession of the victors. Unfortu- 
nately, the American officers lost all control over their 
men. Animated by a burning thirst for vengeance, 
they refused to obey the orders of General Harrison, 
directing them to spike the cannon and retire across 
the river, but eagerly pursued the fugitive artillerists, 
or engaged in a strasgling contest with the Indians 
who now made their appearance. The consequence was 
what might have been foreseen. The enemy rallied, 
and being joined by a reinforcement from the main 
camp about two miles below, and a strong body of In- 
dian warriors under Tecumseh, who had just arrived, 
they became, in turn, the aggressors. Colonel Dudley 
exerted himself to the utmost, to draw otT his men in 
safety, and lost his life in the attempt. The Ameri- 
cans fought bravely ; but they lacked discipline, as they 
wanted discretion. But one hundred and fifty men of 
the command succeeded in crossing the river and reach- 



142 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

ing the fort ; the remainder being killed, wounded, or 
taken prisoners. 

The sortie on the rjght bank of the river was made 
by a detachment of three hundred and fifty men, headed 
by Lieutenant Colonel Miller, of the 19th infantry. 
Imitating the intrepid conduct of their leader, they 
dashed upon the batteries, and drove out the artillei-ists 
and their supporting party, at the point of the bayonet. 
After spiking the cannon and destroying the carriages, 
Lieutenant Colonel Miller returned with forty-two pris- 
oners. While in the act of retiring, the enemy rallied 
and pressed upon him ; but he gallantly hekl them at 
bay till he reached the fort, — having accomplished the 
object for which his command was detached, in a short 
time, and with comparatively trifling loss. 

♦ Meanwhile the remainder of General Clay's com- 
mand encouatered the Indians on the right bank of the 
river, where they landed, and routed them with great 
ease. Incautiously advancing too far, they came very 
near being drawn into an ambush, from which they 
were timely rescued by General Harrison, who dis- 
patched a troop of horse to cover their retreat into the 
fort. 

On the sixth a tacit suspension of hostilities took 
place, which continued dnring that and the two follow- 
ing days. After the sortie, the Indian warriors, in ac- 
cordance with their custom, began to return, in large 
numbers, to their villages, — the eloquent remonstrances 
of Tecumseh proving powerless to detain them. Gen- 
eral Proctor now feared that the Americans would soon 
turn upon him, and he well knew that he had but little 
to hope from the outraged KentucJcians, should the for- 



RETREAT OF PROCTOR. 143 

tunc of war place him in their power. lie therefore 
ch^cided to abandon the attempt on the fort, and on the 
evening of the ninth instant commenced embarking his 
ordnance and stores. A warm fire from the American 
gnns checked the movement for the time ; but, early in 
the morning of the tenth, he made a precipitate retreat 
down the river with his whole command. 

The Americans lost two hundred and seventy men, 
killed and wounded, during the siege. That of the 
enemy was probably about one hundred. Although 
the defence of the fort was attended by no brilliant 
successes, the savages were thereby prevented from 
making their hostile incursions into the settlements. 

At the opening of the season, General Harrison- be- 
came convinced that the command of Lake Erie would 
be decisive of the campaign, and that without it a coJ- 
umn could not be supplied with the ordnance and heavy 
stores necessary for a march on Detroit, or Maiden. 
He therefore recommended the construction of a fleet, 
and Captain Perry was detailed for this service. While 
the naval preparations were in progress, General Har- 
rison left Fort Meigs in charge of General Clay, and 
repaired to Franklinton, where the new regiments from 
Ohio and Kentucky were ordered to rendezvous. At 
this place, also, he received into the service a large 
body of Indian warriors, belonging to the friendly tribes 
in the state of Ohio, and the territories of Indiana and 
Illinois, who could not be induced to remain neutral, 
especially as they had recently been attacked by the 
hostile Indians ; but, unlike the British officers, whose 
conduct throughout contrasts so unfavorably with his, 



144 -WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

he pledged them to spare their prisoners, and to refrain 
from injuring defenceless women and children. 

During the summer months, while General Harrison 
necessarily remained inactive, the British made several 
threatening movements upon Fort Meigs, Fort Stephen- 
son, {at Lower Sandusky,) Cleveland and Erie. To- 
wards the latter part of July, General Proctor again 
made his appearance before Fort Meigs, with between 
three and four thousand troops, including his Indian 
alliesi. General Clay was well prepared for his recep- 
tion, and on discovering this, he retired down the river. 
Accompanied by about five hundred regulars and mi- 
litia, and seven or eight hundred savages, he proceeded 
to Fort Stephenson, then garrisoned by Major Croghan, 
with one hundred and sixty men, and a single .six- 
pounder gun. The fort was invested, and the garrison 
summoned to surrender; the usual threat in regard to 
the ferocity of the Indians being added, with a view of 
terrifying the garrison. Nowise intimidated by the su- 
perior force of the enemy, the gallant Croghan replied 
that, " when the fort should be taken, there would be 
none left to massacre, — as it would not be given up 
while a man was able to fight." 

The breaking day was spreading its warm bright 
flush over the surrounding scenery, on the second of 
August when the enemy opened a vigorous fire from 
three six-pounders planted on the shore during the night, 
and two six-pounders and a howitzer in their gunboats 
lying in the Sandusky. The fire was kept up all day, 
though with trifling eflect, and just before sunset, an 
assaulting column of three hundred and fifty men, led 
by Lieutenant Colonel Short, advanced to the storm, — 



perry's victory. 145 

several feints beini^ made, at the same time, to draw 
the attention of the besieged from the real point of at- 
tack. Major Croghan was not to be deceived ; loading 
his six-pounder to its utmost capacity, witli grape and 
slugs, lie placed it at a masked porthole in a block- 
house at the northwestern angle of the work, so as to 
rake the ditch. This proved to be the point assailed. 
Enveloped in smoke, the assailants advanced rapidly 
up the glacis. When within twenty paces of the ditch, 
a volley of musketry caused them to stagger. Rallied 
by their commander, the foremost files sprang with him 
into the ditcji. At the instant, the charge of the six- 
pounder was poured in upon them, strewing its fiery 
pathway with the dying and the dead. The head of 
the column was completely cut off, and the remainder 
fled in confusion, leaving behind them their fallen 
leader, and a great number of their comrades. 

General Proctor made no further eflbrt to reduce the 
fort. Retreating in haste to his boats, he retired down 
the river to the lake, and thence to Maiden, — having 
lost, in this fruitless attempt, one liundred and fifty 
men, either killed or wounded. The Americans had 
but one man killed and seven wounded. 

After weeks and months of incessant toil. Commo- 
dore Peiry finally got his fleet in readiness. On the 
fourth of August he crossed the bar at Erie with his 
squadron, — consisting of three brigs, five schooners, and 
one sloop, carrying fifty-four guns, — and sailed in quest 
of the eneipy. On the tenth of September, off Put-in 
Bay, he encountered the British squadron, under Cap- 
tain Barclay, consisting of two ships, one brig, two 
schooners, and one sloop, carrying, in all, sixty-three 

7 



146 William HENRY Harrison. 

guns. A desperate engagement, of three hours' dura- 
tion, terminated in the surrender of the hostile ilect. 
This well-fought action was the prelude to one equally 
glorious, and removed the only obstacle to the advance 
of the northwestern army into Canada. 

Commodore Perry immediately returned to Put-in 
Bay, to cooperate Avith the land forces in an expedition 
already projected. General Harrison soon concentrated 
all his disposable troops, among whom were between 
three and four thousand Kentucky volunteers, under 
Governor Shelby, at this point. The regiment of 
mounted men commanded by Colonel R. IM. Johnson, 
one thousand strong, was ordered to proceed to Detroit 
by lanJ ; and the remainder of the army embarked on 
tlie vessels of Commodore Perry, in which they were 
transported to the islands in the vicinity of Maiden. 
On the twenty-seventh of September they effected a 
landinsf on the Canada shore, about three miles below 
that post. 

The hour of reckoning had come for General Proctor 
and the savage banditti whom he had gathered round 
him. Strong in his position at Maiden, and in the men 
and means necessary for its defence, be yet lacked the 
couraije to maintain it. The earnest exhortations of 
TecumsT?h and the other Indian chiefs, who entreated 
him to remain firm, failed to reiissure him. He felt 
that a cause which had been sullied by so much of dis- 
honor, was, indeed, hopeless ; and he feared, as well he 
might, to meet the awakened wrath of the kinsmen 
and friends of the brave men who perished on the Rai- 
sin. Under his orders, the fort was dismantled and 
blown up, and the navy yard, barracks, and store-houses 



PURSUIT OF PROCTOR. 147 

were bnrned. He then retreated liastily towards the 
river Thames, or La Tranchee, with his whole force, 
taking with him large stores of private property, whicli 
he had plundered from American prisoners, and the 
citizens of Detroit. 

General Harrison followed the flying Proctor on the 
twenty-eighth, moving forward with as much rapidity 
as was possible. INIany of the Kentnckians were 
mounted men, but they had been obliged to leave their 
horses on the American shore. The enemy had taken 
away everything of the kind, except a single horse, on 
M'hich Governor Shelby was mounted ; who, though in 
his sixty-third year, pressed forward with all the ardor 
and enthusiasm of twenty-one. The army reached 
Sandwich on the twenty-ninth instant, and General 
Harrison sent a detachment across the river to take 
possession of Detroit, then occupied by hostile Indians. 
On the thirtieth. Colonel Johnson joined the army 
with his regiment, and preparations were at once male 
for continuing the pursuit of General Proctor, — who, 
on arriving at the Thames, had proceeded up the valley 
of the river, with the intention of making his wav to 
■ the British posts about the head of Lake Ontario. 

The Americans resumed the march on the second 
of October, — the mounted rifles of Colonel Johnson 
leading the van. General Harrison was accompanied 
by Commodore Perry and General Cass, as volunteer 
aids ; his whole force consisted of about thirty-five 
hundred men, most of whom were Kentuckians.* From 

* Among the Kentucky volunteers, concerned in this expedition, were 
Wiliium T. Barry and Charles A. Wiekliffe, afterwards Postmasters-gen- 
eral of the United States, and John J. Crittenden, for many years a dis- 



148 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

the highest to the lowest, all manifested tlie same eager 
spirit ; every heart throbbed high with -excitement. 
The time to which tlsey had looked forward with so 
many anxious liopes, had arrived : Proctor and Tecum- 
seh, — the marauders of the one, and the murderers of 
the other, — were before them I 

General Harrison and his men pressed forward with 
such rapidity, that, on the first day of their march, 
they made twenty-six miles. On the next, they cap- 
tured a British officer and eleven men, from whom they 
learned tliat Proctor had not received any intimations 
of their approach that he could rely upon. On the 
fourth instant, they were detained several hours at 
Chatham, seventeen miles above Lake St. Clair, at a 
deep creek that flowed into the Thames, the bridge over 
which had been partly destroyed by the enemy. While 
the men were engaged in repairing it, they were fired 
on by some Indians who appeared on the opposite bank; 
but the latter were quickly dispersed by the artillery 
of Colonel Wood, and the rifles of Colonel Johnson's 
command. At this place, also, the Americans found 
two thousand stand of arms, and a quantity of cloth- 
ing, which had been abandoned by Proctor in his flight. 
After crossing the creek. General Harrison continued 
the pursuit for four miles, capturing several pieces of 
cannon, and forcing the enemy to destroy three of the 
vessels containing their supplies. His men being con- 
siderably jaded by the march, he encamped, late at 
night, almost within striking distance of the allied 

tinguishi'd srnnfor in Congress, subsequently attorney general, again a 
member of the Senate, and, at the present time, (1848,) governor of the 
State of Kentucky. > 



PROCTOR AND TECUMSEII. 149 

force of British and Indians. On the morning of the 
fifth of October, the mounted men, marching from two 
to three miles in front of tiic infantry, discovered the 
enemy drawn up in order of battle, across a narrow 
strip of woodland on the north bank of the Thames, 
near the Moravian villasje. 

The nobler aspirations of the soldier, — if, indeed, they 
ever existed in the breast of General Proctor, — had 
long since given way to cowardice and avarice. His 
chief anxiety now was, to escape with his ill-gotten 
booty. Unwisely incumbered with baggage, his army 
was delayed till their pursuers were close upon them. 
On the afternoon of the fourth instant, it became evi- 
dent that he must soon be overtaken. When he halted 
for the night, he was still uncertain what to do. After 
all was still, at a late hour, Tecumseh and himself si- 
lently descended the river in a boat, and reconnoitred 
the American position. The former earnestly advised 
a night attack, but the latter dared not risk the encoun- 
ter, and determined to make one more effort for escape 
on the morrow. 

What a study would that be for the painter! — 
Proctor and Tecumseh on the Thames, at the dead 
hour of nii^ht — no moon to cheer or li^fht them — the 

O CD 

stars gleaming dimly over their heads — and the solemn 
stillness unbroken, save by the gentle murmuring of 
the river, the low sighing of the breeze, or, it might 
be, the deep, melodious notes of the wood thrush, echo- 
ing sv.'eetly through the forest ; the red warrior arrayed 
in all the gorgeous attire of his race, his tali frame 
swelling with a manly pride, and his eye blazing like 
the young eagle's^ as, in clear ringing tones, he thun- 



150 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

dered forth his fierce invectives on the American peo- 
ple, and entreated his companion to give the signal for 
a midnight onset; the other shrinking, like a craven, 
beside him, and with faltering lips expressing his fears 
and doubts, — his tears, lest the vigilance of Harrison 
had provided against a surprise, and his doubts as to the 
issue ! 

General Proctor persevered in his retreat, on the 
morning of the fifth, until he found that it would bo 
absolutely impossible to make his escape. He then de- 
cided to make a stand. Ordering a halt, he prepared 
his men for action. His regular troops, about eight 
hundred strong, were formed across the road, in two 
lines, in open order, on a narrow isthmus covered with 
thrifty beeches ; their left, supported by the artillery, 
resting on the river, and their right on a swamp run- 
ing parallel to the stream. The Indians, under Te- 
cumseh, to the number of two thousand, were posted 
beyond the swamp, their right thrown forward, and 
resting on another dense morass, — thus forming an ob- 
tuse angle with the allignment of the regular troops. It 
was the intention of the British general, that the In- 
dians should precipitate themselves upon the left flank 
of the American troops as soon as the latter were en- 
gaged with the regulars ; and the ground highly favored 
his purpose. Had he protected his front by an abattis, 
or even thrown a few trees horizontally across the road, 
the result might have been more doubtful, but, as it 
was, the action was scarcely contestetl, so far as he 
was concerned, and soon became a complete rout. 

The original plan of General Harrison, when he saw 
the advantages of the enemy's position, was, to advance 



BATTLE OF THE THAMES. 151 

upon them with his infantry regiments ; and for this 
])urpose he had formed the division of General Henry, 
in three lines, on the right, with the division of Gene- 
ral Desha, en potence, on their left. The regulars, but 
one hundred and twenty in number, were stationed on 
the margin of the river, and instructed, at the favora- 
ble moment, to advanee upon and seize the enemy's 
guns. But on the return of Colonel Wood, who had been 
sent forward to reconnoitre, the fact was disclosed, that 
General Proctor liad formed his men, as has been men- 
tioned, in open order ; whereupon General Harrison 
instantly varied his mode of attack, and directed Colo- 
nel Johnson, wdio had urgently solicited the honor, to 
charge upon the British line with his regiment of 
mounted rifles, while the infantry should promptly fol- 
low the movement. — This order was certainly an un- 
usual one, in military tactics, — although the regiment 
had been carefully drilled to charge upon infantry, es- 
pecially in the woods, — and it has been severely criti- 
cised, and sometimes censured. It was, doubtless, un- 
expected by General Proctor ; and for that reason, if 
no other, was the best, as it proved to be the most fortu- 
nate, that could have been adopted under the circum- 
stances.* 

Just before the trumpets sounded the attack, Colonel 

♦ Nevertheless, it was the decided opinion of Napoleon, (Las Casas, 
vii,, 181,) that cavalry must always break infantry, if led by equally brave 
and resolute men. His cavalry won the victories of Marengo, Austerlitz, 
and Jena ; and a charfje of English dratjoons, on the flank of his Old 
Guaril, lost him the day at Waterloo. It should be borne in mind, how- 
ever, that the mounted men of Colonel Johnson were armed with rilies 
only, and, with the exception of the ofScers. were without pistols and 
Babres. 



153 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

Johnson discovered a narrow passage of firm earth 
leading across the swamp on his left. He then directed 
his brother, Lieutenant Colonel James Johnson, to 
charge the British line with the first battalion of his 
regiment, while he crossed the swamp with the second, 
and engaged the Indians. At the signal, the two bat- 
talions advanced slowly, in parallel columns, — the in- 
fantry following closely in their rear. 

At the first fire, the horses in front of the column led 
by Lieutenant Colonel Johnson, recoiled, — but it was 
corrected in a moment. The bugles pealed forth their 
cheering notes ; the men plunged their rowels into their 
chargers' sides ; and away they all went, thundering 
down upon the enemy — an army of avengers — ready 
to smite and to slay. Bounding over every obstacle, 
teceiving another fire almost unharmed, and riding 
down all who opposed, with fearful yells they dashed 
through and through the British columns, showering 
their balls on every side. In an instant tliey turned 
and delivered a most effective volley. Stupefied and 
disconcerted by the suddenness of the onset, and nearly 
hemmed in between two walls of fire, the enemy made 
no resistance, but threw down their arms, and begged 
for quarter. The brave Kentuckians — to their honor 
be it said — spared all who surrendered. Proctor him- 
self, accompanied by about forty regulars and some 
mounted Indians, made his escape, though hotly pur- 
sued, to Burlington heights, where he was publicly rep- 
rimanded for his cowardly conduct, by the same offi- 
cer — Sir George Prevost — who had commended his 
brutality at Frenchtown. Ilis private carriage and pa- 



DEATH OF TECUMSEli. 153 

pers, his sword, and all his plunder, fell into the hands 
of the victors. 

On the left, Tecurasch and his -warriors refused to 
fly. The advance of the column headed by Colonel 
Johnson was retarded by the uneven character of the 
ground ; his horses floundered in the morass, and strove 
in vain to penetrate the dense thickets of underbrush. 
He soon found that the charge must fail, and directed 
his men to dismount and take cover. Darting from 
tree to tree, they now pressed upon the enemy, and 
after a short, but animatoi contest, broke through the 
line and gained their rear. The Indians quickly rallied 
in force, further to the left, and threw their whole 
weight on the column of infantry under General Desha, 
A slight impression was at one time made, but Gov- 
ernor Shelby immediately restored the line by leading 
up another regiment to the support of the wavering 
column. 

Still the battle raged with great fury. The voice 
of Tecumseh was heard above the din of arms, and his 
tones rang loud and clear as the notes of a trumpet, as 
he called upon his gallant braves to stand firm to the 
last. Colonel Johnson, though severely wounded, and 
a number of his best officers and soldiers, had already 
made their way to the spot where the undaunted chief- 
tain and his bravest warriors had collected. Here the 
battle was fiercely fought. In the 7nelee, Tecumseh 
fell, as it is supposed, by the hand of Colonel John- 
son.* This determined the contest. On the fall of 

» The honor of killing Tecumseh has been denied Colonel Johnson 
upon strong circumstantial evidence. In opposition to this we have the 
sincere belief of the Colonel himself, that he shot the distinguished Indian 



154 ^VILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, 

their leader, the Indians abandoned the ground, and 
with an unearthly whoop, like the wail of lost spirits, 
disappeared in the forest. It was the death-halloo for 
their leader — the most formidable enemy among the 
red men with whom the whites have had to contend, 
since the days of Pontiac. With him their cause was 
prostrated — with him perished their hopes, forever ! 

The American force actually engaged in this battle, 
numbered about twenty-five hundred ; the enemy had 
eight huntlred and forty-five regular troops, and there 
were two thousand Indians. The former lost fifty 
killed and wounded ; of the British there were eighteen 
killed, twenty-six wounded, and about six hundred 
made prisoners. The Americans also captured a large 
quantity of arms, ammunition, and provisions, and six 
pieces of artillery — three of which were captured in 
the Revolution, at Saratoga and Yorktown, and had 
been surrendered by General Hull. But, what was of 
vastly more importance, the territory wliich had been 
overrun by the enemy, was recovered, and the frontiers 
were rescued from the depredations of the savages. By 
the result of this engagement, the hostile Indians were 
cut off from their communications with the British 
posts in Canada, except the remote one at Mackinaw. 
Previous to the battle, an armistice had been entered 
into with the Ottawas and Chi]ipewas, who agreed to 
take up arms against the British, and shortly after- 
chief with his pistol ; he could not wrll be positive upon the subject, as 
he sank upon his dying steed, the tnoinent after he fired his piece, com- 
pletely exhausted from the loss of blood. His bravery, however, cannot 
be questioned, — though Tecuinseh may not have fallen by his hand, — as 
he was borne from the field in a blanket, while his blood ran out at the 
ends. 



EFFECTS OF THE VICTORY. 155 

wards a similar arransrement was entered into with the 
Miarnis and Potowatomies. 

" The victory of Harris^on," said Langdon Cheves, 
alluding, on the floor of Congress, to the battle of the 
Thames, " was such as would have secured to a Ro- 
man genera], in the best days of the republic, the hon- 
ors of a triumph." It was the first considerable action 
in Vv^hich the American arms were triumphant, and, in 
connection with Perry's success on Lake Erie, served 
greatly to revive the drooping spirits of the American 
people. The heroes of the two engagements were 
toasted and feted Vvdierever they went ; salutes, bon- 
fires, illuminations, and resolutions of thanks, attested, 
alike, their merits, and the gratitude of their country- 
men.. 

Having completed the object of the expedition, and 
not having orders to proceed further into the enemy's 
country, General Harrison commenced his retrograde 
march to Detroit, eighty miles distant, on the seventh 
of October, and arrived there on the tenth. The Ken- 
tucky volunteers were soon after conducted to their 
homes by the venerable Governor Shelby, and in a few 
days General Harrison embarked in the fleet of Com- 
modore Perry, for Buffalo, with the brigade of General 
M' Arthur. — General Cass remaining with his brigade 
at Detroit. Harrison reached Buflalo on the twenty- 
fourth of October ; the brigade of General M' Arthur 
proceeded down Lake Ontario to join the unsuccessful 
expedition under General Wilkinson ; and there being 
a sufficient number of general officers already assigned 
to that duty, General Harrison was permitted to return 
home on a furlough. 



156 "WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

While at BufTalo, General Harrison addressed a let- 
ter to General A^incent, the officer commandinsr the 
British troops in the Peninsula, in reply to one he had 
received from General Proctor, immediately after the 
battle of the Thames, requesting the restoration of the 
private property and papers captured on that occasion. 
The letter entered into a lengthy review of the course 
of the English government in employing the savages, 
the barbarities committed by their allies, and the cruel 
manner in which prisoners of war had been treated 
by both Indians and British ; contrasting with the 
conduct of the English and their allies, the kindness 
and clemency which bad distinguished the American 
officers and soldiers, during the war. While he de- 
clared that, in future, retaliation would be made for 
Indian outrages, he appealed to General Vincent, as a 
man, to exert his influence in preventing the commis- 
sion of such atrocities. " Use, I pray you, your au- 
thority and influence," said the letter of Harrison, "to 
stop the dreadful effusion of innocent blood which pro- 
ceeds from the employment o[ those savage monsters, 
whose aid, as must now be discovered, is so little to be 
depended on when most wanted, and which can have 
so trifling an effect on the'^issue of the war." The re- 
ply of General Vincent to this letter, so creditable to 
the heart of the writer, was evasive, although he pledged 
himself to join with General Harrison in attempting 
to alleviate the calamities to which the latter had re- 
ferred. 

This was the last important act of the military ser- 
vice of General Harrison. Shortly after the letter was 
written, ho returned home, on a visit to his family, by 



DEMONSTRATIONS OF RESPECT. 157 

^Yay of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Wash- 
ington ; being received at eacii place on his route with 
the most flattering demonstrations of respect. After 
spending a few weeks at the capital, he continued his 
journey homeward, everywhere encountering the same 
unmistakable evidences of esteem and gi-atitude. 

Connected with his stay at Washington, there is an 
anecdote on record, which shows that his gallantry 
towards his fair countrywomen, was fully equal to that 
other quality, bearing the same name, that he had cx- 
liibited on the field of battle. At one of the drawing- 
rooms of ^Irs. Madison, a handsome and highly con- 
nected lady, one of the reigning belles at the capital, 
informed the president that she had laid her commands 
on General Harrison to meet her there on that occa- 
sion. — " That he cannot do," said Mr. Madison, in his 
usual bland, but positive tone ; " he left Washington 
this morning, with his horses and attendants, and must 
now be some twenty or thirty miles on his way to the 
west." — " Still," replied the lady, archly, " he must be 
liere, for I laid ray commands on him, and he is too 
gallant a man to disobey me I" — " We shall soon see," 
returned the president, " whose orders he obeys." — Af- 
ter the lapse of a few moments, the question was set- 
tled by the appearance of General Harrison and his 
suite in full military costume, and President Madison 
was for once obliged to acknowledge that he was mis- 
taken. 

The military districts into which the country was 
divided during the war of 1812, were so extensive, that 
it was very often deemed necessary to transmit orders 
directly from the War Department to a subordinate 



158 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

officer, at tlic same time forwarding duplicates to the 
commander of the di.striGt. This practice frequently oc- 
casioned, as it has since done, ill-feeling and dissatisfac- 
tion. It was condemned by General Harrison as being 
wholly inconsistent with subordination, and similar views 
were afterwards taken by some of our most distin- 
guished officers — among others, Generals Jackson, 
Scott, and Taylor. Harrison remonstrated against the 
practice in earnest terms. The Secretary of War, 
General Armstrong, being not well disposed towards 
him, a sharp and acrimonious correspondence ensued. 
President Madison insisted on continuing the practice, 
and in the spring of 1814, General Harrison tendered 
his resignation. The president was absent from Wash- 
ington at the time the letter was received, and the 
resignation was acccj^ted by the Secretary. 

President Madison sincerely regretted the separation 
of General Ilarri.son from the army, and in a letter 
soon after written to Governor Shelby, he said, that the 
resignation "would not have been accepted, had he 
been in Washinii-ton." That his confidence in Harri- 
son was never in the least degree weakened, is evident, 
froiu the fact that he afterwards employed him to con- 
duct several extremely difficult negotiations with vari- 
ous tribes of Indians. 

General Harrison continued to discharge the duties 
of governor of the territory of Indiana, until it was ad- 
mitted into the Union as a state, in 1816, when he 
retired to his farm at North Bend, a few miles below 
Cincinnati, in Hamilton county, Ohio. In the same 
year he was elected a member of the House of Repre- 
sentatives of the United States. He afterwards repre- 



APPOINTED MINISTER TO COLOMBIA. 159 

sented the district in which he resided in the State Sen- 
ate, and in 1824 was chosen a Senator in Congress. 
As a legishitor, General Harrison was distinguished for 
his practical common sense. Though he spoke but 
rarely, he was considered an efficient debater. His 
views on all subjects were regarded with respect, and 
those having reference to the reorganization of the 
array, and the peculiar interests of the western states 
and territories, were listened to with especial deference. 

In 1828, at his solicitation, he was appointed by 
President J. Q. Adams, Minister Plenipotentiary to the 
Republic of Colombia. The distracted condition of the 
country prevented his accomplishing anything of im- 
portance, though his brief residence there was signal- 
ized by a letter addressed to Bolivar, replete with good 
advice, and full of noble and manly sentiments. " To 
be esteemed eminently great," said he, " it is neces- 
sary to be eminently good. The qualities of the hero 
and the general must be devoted to the advantage of 
mankind, beforehe will be permitted to assume the title 
of their benefactor ; and the station which he will hold 
in their regard and affections, will depend, not upon the 
number and splendor of his victories, but upon the re- 
sults, and the use he may make of the influence he 
acquires from them." — Trite and common-place as 
these sentiments may at this day seem to the American 
reader, had they but formed the rule of the public con- 
duct of Bolivar, he would now be remembered only as 
the Liberator, not as the Dictator. 

On the accession of General Jackson to the presi- 
dency, in 1829, as the views of General Harrison in 
regard to the Panama question differed from those of 



160 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

the new administration, he was recalled, and again re- 
turned to the avocations of private life. Though he 
had had numerous opportunities of amassing wealth in 
the various ofllces which he had filled, he was still in 
moderate circumstances. In 1834, on the almost 
unanimous petition of the citizens of Hamilton county, 
he was appointed prothonotary of the county court, the 
duties of whicli he discharged, in person, for several 
years. In 1836, he was supported, in some of the states, 
though v.'ith no expectation of being elected, for the 
office of President, and received seventy-three of the 
electoral votes. 

He was still leading a happy and contented fife in his 
retirement at North Bend, — 

" A simple husbandman, in garments gray," — 

when he was nominated as the candidate of the whig 
party for the presidency, in December, 1839. In the fol- 
lowing year, he was elected to the office, over his com- 
petitor, Mr. Van Buren, by an overwhelming majori- 
ty,— receiving two hundred and thirty-four out of two 
hundred and ninety-four electoral votes. On the fourth 
of March, 1841, he took the oath of office, and de- 
livered his inaugural address, amid a large concourse of 
spectators. Selecting as his cabinet advisers, some of 
the most distinguished statesmen of the country, frcim 
the party to which he belonged, he entered on his admin- 
istration under the most flattering prospects of success. 
One brief month terminated his earthly career, and 
marred all the bright hopes of those who had elevated 
him to tliat high station. Instead of the brilliant cor- 



ELECTED PRESIDENT. HIS DEATH. 



161 



ie2;e tliat accompanied him on the occasion of his in- 
auguration, another procession — ^yithout the joyous 
salvos of artillery, or the lively strains of martial mu- 
gic — but clothed in the habiliments of mourning, with 
banners shrouded in crape, with weeping plumes, with 
arms reversed, and muffled drums, followed his remains 
to the Congressional Cemetery. 

A few days after his arrival at Washington, the 
president caught a severe cold, which, in connection 
with the unaccustomed excitement, and the harassing 
nature of his new duties, soon prostrated him on a sick 
bed. In spite of the utmost efforts of his medical at- 
tendants, he rapidly grew worse. His system had re- 
received a fatal shock ; and on the fourth day of April, 
1841, — in the same mansion where, nearly thirty years 
before, he had attended the gay soiree of Mrs. Madi- 
son — he died, expressirg, with his latest breath, as his 
spirit gathered its pinions for its eternal flight, his anx- 
ious desire, that the constitution of the country should, 
ill all things, be the guide of those upon whom his otH- 
cial duties were about to devolve. 

General Harrison was simple and frugal in his habits, 
and, until his last fatal illness, enjoyed good bodily health. 
He was tall and slender in person, and his dark eyes 
gleamed with intelligence. An analysis of his charac- 
ter presents few marked, or striking points. The qual- 
ities of his heart were probably more conspicuous than 
thnpe of his head. He was liberal and friendly, social 
and generous in his disposition. " His heart," says 
Governor Metcalfe, " was expanded, and always in the 
right place" : — it Avas brimful of kindly aliections — 
overflowing with benevolence and love. 



162 WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. 

He possessed a happy combination of mental facul- 
ties ; ho was a plain, practical man, — a man, not of 
pretence, but of action. His voluminous correspond- 
ence, as governor of Indiana TeiTitory, his speeches in 
Congress, his official dispatches, and his inaugural ad- 
dress, indicate a sound judgment, strong good sense, 
and a well-cultivated mind. His integrity was of that 
sterling character which is proof against temptation. 
As a soldier, he was usually successful, because he was 
not rash or impulsive, but' cautious and prudent. He 
was patient in adversity, and never easily disconcerted ; 
he was calm, collected, and resolute — and therefore 
always fitted for an emergency, how trying soever it 
might be. But, what was still worthier and better, 
throughout his life, even to the closing hour of his ex- 
istence, he was cheered and sustained, by the hopes of 
the patriot, and the consolations of the Christian. 



ANDREW JACKSON, 



" It is not in Indian wars", said an eloquent writer 
and speaker of a by-gone age,^^ " that heroes are cele- 
brated ; but in them they are formed." — Applied to the 
subject of this biographical sUetch, the remark is partly 
correct, partly not correct. His brilliant success at 
New Orleans undoubtedly eclipsed all his former victo- 
ries ; but, had that battle never been fought, it may be 
questioned whether the Creek campaign would not have 
established his celebrity as a hero, beyond dispute. 
Yet it must be admitted, that his military experience 
was mainly acquired, and his military character formed, 
amid the hardships and vicissitudes, the trials and dan- 
gers, of that campaign. In this respect, he resembles 
some of the most eminent warriors that America has 
produced, many of whom laid the foundation of future 
renown and distinction, in the border wars with the 
aboriginal inhabitants, which grew out of the discovery 
and settlement of the country, or the subsequent en- 
croachments of the whites. 

The father of Andrew Jackson, though a native of 
Ireland, was of Scotch descent. — During the reign of 
Henry II, in 1172, the subjugation of the Emerald 

♦ Fisher Ames. 



164 ANDREW JACKSON. 

Isle was? effected, — not so much by the sujDerior bravery 
of the EngUsh soldiery, as by the defection of her own 
sons. The conquest entailed, on both oppressor and 
victim, a fruitful legacy of war and bloodshed. It was 
followed by years of strife and dissension — by centu- 
ries of tyrannical misrule on the one hand, and resist- 
ance to wronar on the other. Time did not change the 
character of the Irish peasantry ; they were no loyal 
subjects of their new masters, — neither did they remit 
their eflorts to regain their independence. Among 
other expedients resorted to by the English government, 
for confirming their ascendency, was the confiscation 
of all the lands in Ulster, and large portions of the other 
provinces. These were granted to new proprietors, and 
measures were taken to colonize them from England 
and Scotland. 

The Jackson family emigrated from Scotland at a 
very remote period, and settled in the county of An- 
trim. Whether it was on account of their proximity 
to the ancient seat of the O'Neals, in Tyrone, or their 
intermarriage and intcrcovirse with the original natives 
of the country, is unknown ; but it is nevertheless cer- 
tain, that they soon became imbued with the spirit of 
disaffection that had so long prevailed in that quarter ; 
and when the colonists began to experience the bitter- 
ness of oppression, they, too, learned to hate the name 
and authority of England. 

Hugh Jackson, the grandfather of General Jackson, 
Avas a linen-draper, and resided near Carrickfergus, on 
the Lough of Belfast. He had four sons, who were 
plain respectable farmers, liberal and hospitable, of 
strict integrity, and, like their forefathers, firm in their 



HIS BIRTH. 165 

adherence to the Churcli of Scotland. Andrew, the 
youngest, married Elizabeth Hutchinson, by whom ho 
had two son?, Hugh and Robert, born in IrL-land. Tired 
of the ceaseless turmoil and confusion that distracted 
the country, and despairing of the success of any at- 
tempt to relieve the Irish people from the grievances 
of which they complained, he sold his farm, and, in 
1765, determined to seek a more tranquil and peaceful 
home in the western wilderness. Accompanied by 
three of his neighbors, James, Robert, and Joseph 
Crawford, the first of whom had married a sister of his 
wife, he embarked for America with his family, and 
landed in safety, at Charleston, South Carolina. 

Dissatisfied with the low country bordering on the 
coast, the immigrants pushed into the interior of the 
colony. Lands were pvirchased, and they all settled 
near each other, on Waxhaw creek, one of the branches 
of the Catawba, in Lancaster district, about forty-five 
miles above Camden, and near the boundary line of 
North Carolina. Here, in this fine and healthy region, 
agreeably diversified with hills and dales, and drained 
by the romantic Catawba, Andrew Jackson, the 
younger, was born, on the fifteenth day of March, 1767. 

Not long after the birth of his third son, the elder 
Jackson died, leaving to his wife and children a limited 
iproperty, yet with an honest and unsullied name. A 
double duty now devolved on the surviving parent. 
Faithfully and nobly was it discharged. To the reso- 
lute firmness and unflinching fortitude of the Spartan 
mother, she united tiie piety and resignation, the trust- 
ful faith and confidence, of the devoted Christian. 
Naturally gifted with a strong mind, early disciplined 



166 ANDRKW JACKSON. 

in the school of adversity, and strengthened by Him 
who is ever the stay and helper of tlia widow and or- 
phan, no difRcnlties deterred her from the accomplish- 
ment of her liigh and holy task. 

The property of which I\Irs. Jaclcson was left in pos- 
session, consisted of a new farm, without slaves ; and 
it required the constant practice of the most rigid econ- 
omy and prudence, to enable her to provide for the 
maintenance and education of her three young sons. 
After her husband's death, she too!v charge of Mr. 
Crawford's family, — her sister, Mrs. Crawford, being 
in feeble health. Her two younger sons, Robert and 
Andrew, remained with her, and the oldest went to re- 
side with a neighbor. Hugh and Robert received only 
a common-school education ; but Andrew w^as desiarned 
by the, perhaps, partial mother, for a more enlarged 
sphere of usefulness. She intended him for the church, 
and 'therefore sent him to the Waxhaw Academy, then 
under the charge of Mr. Humphries, where he acquired 
a knowledge of the various English branches tauglit 
at that time, and had made considerable progress in the 
Latin and Greek languasjes, when the ravaijes of the 
revolutionary war, approaching nearer to this remote 
settlement, put an end to his studies. 

Sentiments of patriotism were early imbibed by the 
sons of Mrs. Jackson. Her instructions, and the exam- 
ple of their friends and kindred, inspired them, in child- 
hood, with an ardent love of liberty. Reminiscences 
of" father-land" were often mingled with her teachings; 
she recounted deeds of cruelty and oppression that fired 
their youthful bosoms with indignation ; she told them 
of th^njustice under which their ancestors had sutlered, 



INVASION OF SOUTH CAROLINA. 167 

and from wliich their father had fled ; and she reminded 
tliem, also, that the same tyrannical power which had 
perpetrated these wrongs, was endeavoring to reduce 
the American colonists to a state of abject and hopeless 
slavery. Soon they beheld the watch-fires of liberty 
blazing up on every hill-top and mountain, and heard 
the deep thunders of war echoing through the pine- 
barrens and savannas of their own sunny clime. The 
vouno- and middle-asred men, in the Waxhaws and its 
vicinity, were enrolled in companies, and met frequently 
for military discipline, while their gray-headed sires 
looked on approvingly, and bade them never shame the 
blood from which they sprung. ■ 

Boys though they were, the young Jacksons became 
deeply imbued with the prevailing spirit. This was 
especially the case with Andrew, who longed for the 
hour to arrive, when he would be able to shoulder a 
musket, and perform some doughty enterprise, in de- 
fence of the liberties of his country. 

The officers charged with, what proved to be the 
Sisyphian task, of subjugating the colonial rebels, made 
their first principal efforts in the northern provinces.^ 
Foiled, or beaten here, they turned their attention to 
the South. Savannah was reduced in December, 1778, 
and South Carolina invaded in the spring of 1779. 
Among those who marched out to meet the enemy, 
was Hugh Jackson, the oldest of the three brothers : 
he belonged to the company commanded by Captain, 
afterwards Colonel Davie, and was present at the battle 
of Stono, on the twentieth of June, where he lost his 

* An attempt was made on Charleston, in June, 1776 ; but the enemy 
were ifepulsed with great loss. * 



168 ANDREW JACKSON. 

life from the excessive heat of the day. Early in 1780, 
a more formidable effort was made by the enemy, in 
South Carolina. Charleston was invested by a strong 
force, under Sir Henry Clinton, on the thirtieth of 
March ; General Lincoln, then at the head of the 
southern army, stoutly defended the post, but was 
compelled to capitulate on the tv.^elfth of May 

After the surrender of Charleston, the British com- 
mander divided his army into three columns ; one being 
directed to move up the Savannah river to Augusta, 
another up the Congaree and Saluda to Ninety-six, and 
the third, under Lord Cornwallis, up the Wateree to 
Camden. At this time, there were several detachments, 
belonging to the American army, in the country, who 
were not included in the capitulation. One of these, 
consisting of about four hundred men, with two pieces 
of artillery, was commanded by Colonel Buford, who, 
on the advance of Cornwallis, retired up the Catawba, 
towards Charlotte, in North Carolina. Colonel Tarleton 
was immediately dispatched, with two hundred and 
seventy mounted men, in pursuit ; by making rapid 
marches, he came uj) with the party under Colonel 
Buford, at the Waxhaw settlement, on the twenty- 
ninth of May. A brief, but bloody contest, took place ; 
the Americans were soon overcome by the dragoons of 
Tarleton ; quarter was rarely given when demanded ; 
upwards of two hundred and sixty of the detachment 
were killed, or desperately wounded ; and their artillery, 
with their ammunition and stores, fell into the hands 
of the enemy. 

A great portion of the American soldiers wounded in 
this conflict were paroled on the spot, and left at the 



DEFEAT OF COLONEL BUFORD's TAUTY. 169 

"Waxhaws, to the humanity of tlic inhabitants. The 
latter were not wanting in kind and generous feelings, 
and their sympathy was freely bestowed on those who 
had suffered and endured so much in behalf of the com- 
mon cause. The meeting-house in the settlement was 
speedily converted into a hospital ; nurses were pro- 
vided, — Mrs. Jackson offering her services with others ; 
and every attention was paid to the comfort and wants 
of the unfortunate victims of tlic brutal ferocity of 
Tarleton and his followers. This was the first lesson 
learned by Andrew Jackson from actual observation, in 
regard to the horrors of war, — and it produced a pow- 
erful impression on his mind. So far from being intim- 
idated, however, by the sufferings which ho witnessed, 
his desire for taking part in the struggle was only stim- 
ulated and quickened. 

Not long after this bloody catastrophe, Lord Rawdon 
was dispatched by Cornv/allis into the Waxhaw settle- 
ment, with a large body of troops, to practice the same 
sanguinary measures which had been adopted in other 
parts of the province. Upon the fall of Charleston, 
marauding parties of British dragoons were sant out to 
scour the country ; the timid were conciliated, and the 
refractory punished ; rapine, murder, and violence, were 
committed with impunity ; members of the same family 
were arrayed against each other, and all were made to 
suffer the misery and wretchedness ever attendant on 
civil war. The loyalists, or Tories, gladly hailed the 
appearance of the British troops ; others consented to 
take protection, as it was called, in the hope, often a 
mistaken one, of enjoying an immunity from attack ; 

8 



170 ^M)Hi:\V JACKCJUN. 

bnt there were many who refused to waver in their 
alleofianco to the Confederation. 

Mrs. Jackson and her two sons, with a number of 
the Waxhaw settlers, retired before Lord Rawdon, into 
North Carolina, where they remained for several days, 
and mitil he was recalled to Camden. Resistance had 
now nearly ceased ; and the British officers began to 
flatter themselves with the belief that the province was 
completely subdued. But a few weeks elapsed, how- 
ever, ere General Sumter, vvdio resided near the Wax- 
haws, returned from North Carolina, where he had also 
been a voluntary exile, and raised the patriot .standard, 
at the head of his small but gallant band. Other par- 
tisan corps, under Marion, Pickens, and Davie, were 
soon formed. WitJiout pay ; scantily sripplied with 
clothmg and subsistence ; provided with guns of every 
form and calibre, and swords and lances fashioned out 
of the rude implements of husbandry ; and mainly rely- 
ing for ammunition on their captures from the enemy, 
— these brave yeomen rendezvoused in the swamps and 
forests of South Carolina, where they bivouacked, night 
after night, in the open air, and from v/hich they darted 
forth on detached parties of British and Tories, like the 
eagle on its prey. 

On the thirtieth of July, General Sumter, with 
about six Imndred men, made an unsuccessful attack 
on the advanced post of the British, at Rocky Mount. 
Three dcisperatc efforts demonstrated the impractica- 
bility of carrying the enemy's fortifications, and being 
entirely without cannon, he was obliged to draw off his- 
command. He was now reinforced by a party of the 
Waxhaw settlers, under Colonel Davie., and, on thS 



HIS FIRST BATTLE. 



I'^l 



sixth of August, proceeded against the post at Hanging 
R(H-k, midway between Camden and the Waxhaws. 
The first onset was attended with complete success. 
The enemy were driven from their camp, and tooic 
shelter in the main work. Unfortunately, many of 
Sumter's men had fasted so long, that they preferred to 
search for something to eat and drink, rather than to 
advance and secure the victory, by carrying the post, 
which might then have been easily accomplished. A 
quantity of liquor was found in the camp, and they 
commenced drinking, in opposition to the urgent re- 
monstrances of their commander. Apprehending the 
worst consequences if they remained, he resolved to 
retire to his encampment before they became wholly 
ungovernable. 

The corps of Colonel Davie particularly distinguished 
itself on this occasion. Prominent among its members, 
were Lieutenant James Crawford, and Robert and 
I Andrew Jackson, — the latter a mere stripling, but 
thirteen years of age ; yet, in heart and soul, he was a 
man. This was his first battle, and the accounts wo 
have of it show that both he and his brother rendered 
good service. 

Ten days after this affair. General Gates \A^as terribly 
defeated by Lord Cornwall is, and, two days later. 
General Sumter, overburdened with baggage and pris- 
oners — having recently captured a convoy of British 
stores, with their escort, coming up from Charleston to 
Camden — was surprised by Colonel Tarleton, and his 
band routed and dispersed. Following up the advan- 
tage he had gained, Cornwallis marched with his whole 
army, on the eighth of September, in the direction of 



172 ANDREW JACKSON. 

Charlotte, wIiitluT the remnant of Gates' army had 
fled. On I)is approach to the Waxhaw settlement, 
Mrs. Jackson again retired into North Carolina, passing 
through Charlotte, on her way to Guilford county, on 
the morning of the day upon which the British van 
approached the town. She was accompanied by her 
two sons, neither of whom, on account of their youth, 
was yet permanently attached to a military corps. 

Cornwallis soon found great difficulty in maintaining 
himself at Charlotte. His communications with the 
seaboard were cut off, and iiis supplies intercepted, by 
the partisans ; and his position became still more em- 
barrassing, upon the defeat, and almost total annihila- 
tion, of Major Ferguson's command, at King's Mountain, 
on tiie seventh of October. He therefore determined 
to retreat, before he was entirely surrounded by the 
aroused and patriotic militia of the Carolinas. On the 
fourteenth of October, he retraced his steps to the 
Waxhaws, and shortly after established himself at 
Winnsborough, where he awaited the arrival of re- 
inforcements. 

Besides other affairs, of minor importance, but equally 
honorable to the American cause, the battle of the 
Cowpens, and the masterly retreat of General Greene, 
took place during the ensuing winter, while Mrs. Jackson 
and her sons, with other Waxhaw settlers, remained in 
North Carolina. Early in February, 1781, Cornwallis 
cro.ssed the Yadkin, in pursuit of Greene ; and she and 
her friends thereupon returned to their homes, although 
they were in the immediate vicinity of the British posts, 
and the country around was full of armed parties of 



DARING AND RESOLUTION. 173 

Tories, whose cruelties and enormities were every day 
becominj^ more barbarous and revolting. 

The struggle now began to assume, especially in the 
Carolinas, a yet more direful aspect. A fierce war of 
extermination was waged between Whigs and Tories. 
The two parties, or factions — call them what we may 
— could not exist on^the sai^ie soil. The former had 
imperilled everything in the effort to secure their inde- 
pendence, and they fought for the safety, not merely of 
themselves, but of their wives and children, their prop- 
erty, their all ! Boys, as well as men, engaged in this 
bloody warfare, and it was amid its trying scenes, that 
the stern and inflexible daring and resolution were 
formed and manifested, which distinguished Andrew 
Jackson in after life. 

The two young Jacksons kept their horses and guns, 
like their neighbors, and were always ready for any 
enterprise of danger or ditliculty. Among other ser- 
vices wiiich they performed, was that of keeping guard 
at the houses of the Whig officers who resided near 
them, when they desired to visit their famili'^s. The 
conduct of Andrew on one of these occasions, — his 
rapidity of thought and action, — afforded a signal 
presage of future ability : — 

A captain in the colonial service, by the name of 
Lands, desired to spend a night with his family, at his 
house, on the right bank of the Catawba, a short dis- 
tance below the mouth of the Waxhaw. Robert and 
Andrew Jackson, one of the Crawfords, and five other 
men, including a recent deserter from the British army, 
constituted his guard. W^ith the captain, there were 
nine men, and but seven muskets. Having no appre- 



174 ANDREW JACKSON. 

hensions of an attack, they laid down on their arms, 
upon the floor of the house, and all went to sleep, except 
the deserter, whose fears of a recapture kept him awake. 
Meantime a party of Tories, who had been apprised of 
Lands' return, were on the way to sm-prise and Iviil 
him. The house was approached on the south, by a 
road leadini? through a w^ood. The Tories gained tlie 
rear of the stable, that stood in one corner of the in- 
closed yard around the house, unobserved. Behind this 
their horses were tied, and, dividing into two parties, 
they then advanced against the dwelling, which had 
two doors ; one facing the east, — in front of which was 
a forked apple tree, — and the other the west. 

The deserter, who remained on the watch, hearing a 
noise about the stable, went out to discover from whence 
it proceeded. He had gone but a few steps from the 
door, when he descried the party of Tories approaching 
the east end of the building. Instantly darting back, 
he caught Andrew Jackson, who lay nearest the door, 
by the hair, crying out in alarm, " The Tories are upon 
us — the Tories are upon us ! " Andrew was on his 
feet in a moment ; seizing his gun, he darted out of the 
house, and thrusting the piece through the fork of the 
apple tree, loudly hailed the advancing party. No an- 
swer was given. He repeated the hail, — still there was 
no reply. He then fired, and at the same instant a 
volley was returned by the enemy, which killed the 
deserter, who stood at his side. This prompt movement 
on his part, however, saved the inmates of the house. 
The first party of Tories were brought to a stand, and, 
in the darkness, their fire was mistaken by their com- 
rades, who were moving towards the west door, for 



ATTACK ON THE "WAXIIAAV SETTLERS. 175 

that of a sallying party. The latter also halted, and a 
brisk fire commenced between the two parties. After 
discharging his piece, Andrew Jackson returned into 
the lion.se, and, with two others, commenced firing 
from tlie west door. Both his companions were shot 
down, one of them being mortally wounded ; but he 
escaped untouched. The two bands of Tories still 
continued to ]3our their volleys into each other, and 
upon the house, till they were alarmed by the notes of 
a cavahy trumpet, sounding the charge, in the distance, 
when they mounted their horses, and fled in hot haste. 
The charge was sounded by a Major Isbei, who was 
in the neighborhood, but had not a single man with 
him. He had heard the firing, and, presuming that 
Lands' house was attacked, had taken this means to 
alarm the assailants, which fortunately proved effectual. 
After the departure of Cornwallis from South Caro- 
lina, Lord Rawdon, whose head-quarters were at 
Camden, was left in command. By this time, the 
stubborn patriotism of the Waxhaw settlers was well 
understood ; and on being advised of their return, ha 
dispatched Major Coffin, with a corps of light dragoons, 
a company of infantry, and a number of Tories, to 
capture them. On being informed of their danger, the 
settlers resolved that they would no longer fly, but 
maintain their ground at all hazards. A day was 
appointed for the male inhabitants in the settlement, 
capable of bearing arms, to assemble at the Waxhaw 
meeting-house, which was fixed upon as the place of 
rendezvous. Punctual, at the time and place, about 
forty of the settlers, — Robert and Andrew Jackson 
being among the number, — had collected, and were 



176 ANDREW JACKSON. 

waiting for a friendly company, under Captain Nesbit, 
when they saw what they supposed to be tlie expectedl 
reinforcement, — but which, in reality, was the detach- 
ment of Major Coffin, with the Tories, who wore the 
usual dress of the country, in front, — approaching at a 
rapid rate. The deception was not discovered, till the 
British dashed in among them, cleaving down all who 
stood in their way. Eleven of the party were taken 
prisoners ; the remainder sprang upon their horses, and 
most of them made their escape. 

Andrew Jackson was accompanied in his flight, by his 
cousin, Lieutenant Thomas Crawford ; but, in passing 
over a piece of marshy ground, the horse of the latter 
mired and fell, and he was wounded and taken prisoner. 
Young Jackson shortly after encountered his brother, 
who had also eluded pursuit. They remained together 
during the night, and, at dawn on the following morn- 
ing, concealed themselves in a dense thicket, on the 
bank of Cain Creek, near the house of Lieutenant 
Crawford. During the day they became very hungry, 
and, deeming themselves secure, ventured out to the 
house. A boy was directed to watch the road ; but 
while they were satisfying their hunger, a band of 
Tories and dragoons, who had discovered their retreat, 
and captured their horses and guns, whicli were left 
behind them, suddenly maile their appearance, and 
surrounded the house. Resistance coald be of no 
avail, and escape was impossible. They therefore sur- 
rendered themselves prisoners of war. 

Not content with the capture of the two young men, 
the dragoons and Tories commenced' abusing and mal- 
treating Mrs. Crawford and her cliildrcn. The crockery 



TAKEN PRISONER TO CAMDEN. 177 

and furniture in the house were broken in pieces ; and 
the beds and bedding, and all the clothing of the family, 
including that of an infant at the breast, was torn into 
shreds. While the work of destruction was going on, 
the British officer, in command of the party, directed 
Andrew Jackson to clean the mud from his boots. 
As might be supposed, he indignantly refused to do 
the menial office. Enraged at this reply, the officer 
drew his sword, and aimed a dastard blow at the head 
of his unarmed prisoner. The latter parried it with his 
left hand, but, in so doing, received a cut, the scar of 
which was carried to his grave. Disappointed in the 
spirit of the intrepid youth, the oilicer turned to his 
brother, and required him to perform the task. Robert 
likewise refused ; a furious blow from the infuriated 
Briton, was the consequence ; and a wound was inffict- 
ed, from the effect of which his victim never recovered. 
Andrew Jackson was then placed on a horse, and di- 
rected, under a threat of instant death if he refused, to 
guide the party to the house of Major Thompson, a 
well-known Whig, who lived below Crawford's, on the 
same side of the stream. Fearing that Thompson 
might be at home, our hero resorted to a stratagem to 
save him ; which, though it might naturally have sug- 
gested itself to his mind, seems strange enough when 
we reflect that it was not only conceived, but executed, 
by a lad scarcely fourteen years of age. — Leading the 
party by a circuitous route, he brought them within 
full view of Thompson's house, at the distance of a 
half mile. Nothing more was necessary. The dra- 
goons spurred onward, but they were still several hun- 
dred yards distant, when they saw the major issu,e 

8* 



178 ANDREW JACKSON. 

forth, mount his horse, which, as was then customary, 
was kept ready saddled, and dash towards the creek. 
The British darted alter him in pursuit, but reached 
the stream only in time to hear his loud shout of defiance, 
as he rode leisurely off along the opposite bank. The 
current was so much swollen by the influx during the 
rainy season, that they dare not attempt to cross it, 
and therefore reluctantly abandoned the chase. 

After this unsuccessful attempt to capture the "Whig 
officer, the two Jacksons, with about twenty other 
prisoners, were mounted on captured horses, and the 
party set out on their return to Camden. Not a 
mouthful of food, or drop of water, v/as given them on 
the road ; and when they reached Camden, they were 
thrust into a redoubt surrounding the jail, in which 
some two hundred and fifty prisoners, besides those 
taken at the Waxhaws, were confined. Here they 
were stripped of part of their clothing, — xVndrew losing 
his jacket and shoes ; their wounds were undressed ; 
no attention was paid to their wants ; and when the 
relationship between the two Jacksons and Lieutenant 
Crawford was discovered, they were instantly separated, 
and kept in ignorance of each other's fate. The Provost 
was a Tory from New York, who, it was afterwards 
said, took the provisions intended for the prisoners, to 
feed a number of negroes whom he had collected from 
different Whig plantations, with the intention of dis- 
posing of them for his own benefit. Be that as it may, 
the prisoners were but sparingly supj)liei] with bad 
bread ; and to add to their wretchedness, the smallpox 
appeared among them, and made frightful ravages. 

Amid the accumulated horrors of his prison-house, 



BATTM; Ul' llOJJKiRK's HILL. 179 

with sickness and starvation staring him in the face, 
the groans ol" the dying constantly ringing in iiis cars, 
and hourly exposed to the ill-trcatnient of his captors, — 
Andrew Jackson never lost the fearlessness of spirit 
which ever distininiished him. Availing himself of a 
favorable opportunity, he boldly remonstrated with the 
oliicer of the guard, in behalf of himself and his suffering 
companions. His remonstrances had the desired effect ; 
meat was added to the rations, and, in other respects, 
the condition of the prisoners was decidedly improved. 

Matters were in this situation, when General Greene 
returned from North Carolina, in April, 1781, and en- 
camped, with his army, on Hobkirk's Hill, a little over 
a mile north of Camden, waiting only the ai'rival of his 
cannon, before making his dispositions to assault the 
post. 

On the morning of the twenty-fourth of April, 
Andrew Jackson discovered indications of a design to 
attack General Greene. The jail and redoubt stood on 
the eminence upon which Camden is situated, and a 
tine view would have been afforded of the encampment 
on Hobkirk's Hill, had not the British taken the pre- 
caution to construct a high and tight plank fence on 
the redoubt, inmiediately after the arrival of the Amer- 
ican army in the neighborhood. He was determined, 
nevertheless, to obtain a view of the anticipated conflict ; 
and, by working nearly all night, with an old razor- 
hl'dde, furnished the prisoners to cut their rations, he 
succeeded in diwoing out a knot in one of the planks. 
When Lord Rawdon led out his men, on the morning 
of the twenty-fifth, for a bold stroke at the American 
leader, Andrev/ mounted the breastwork, and placed 



180 ANDREW JACICSOiT. 

himself at the look-out, while his fellow prisoners gath- 
ered in groups below him, listening attentively, as he 
detailed the varied incidents of the day. 

His voice was tremulons with apprehension, as he 
informed his companions, that the Americans had been 
taken unawares, and their pickets were driven in ; it 
was pitched to a louder key, wlien the cannon of Greene 
opened their brazen throats, and vomited forth torrents 
of flame and iron, tearing and rending through the 
British columns ; again it sank, as the enemy rallied, 
and pushed boldly forward; it rose once more, when 
the regiments of Ford and Campbell pressed gallantly 
upon their ilanks — when Washington and his brave 
dragoons came thunderinaf down in their rear — and he 
caught sight of the glistening bayonets of the 1st Ma- 
ryland, and the Virginians, as they prepared to charge 
home upon their assailants ; it fell again, as the veteran 
regiment of Gunby recoiled before the British fire, and 
died away into a whisper, when ail hope of deliverance 
vanished, as the beaten, but not routed Greene, retired 
slowly over the hill, and the pursuit was only checked 
by the timely charge of Washington's cavalry. 

The Jacksons were not deserted by one friend, in their 
confinement — the mother who had reared them to serve 
their country, and who knew no prouder joy, than to 
see them do tiieir duty well. She followed them to 
Camden, to aid and succor them, and, soon after the 
battle of Hobkirk's Hill, procured their exchange, with 
five of their neighbors, for thirteen British soldiers, 
captured by a Whig ])artisan captain, by the name of 
Walker. Pale, emaciated, barefooted, almost naked, 
and infected with the smallpox, they presented them- 



RELEASE FROM CAPTIVITY. 181 

selves before their surviving parent. The wound in 
Robert's head had never been dressed ; and this, in 
connection with hunger, and the disease that had fast- 
ened itself upon him, had reduced [liin so low, that he 
was unable even to ride, except as he was held on a horse. 

There were but two horses for the whole party, 
consisting of Mrs. Jackson and her sons, and the other 
released prisoners, who accompanied them home. Mrs. 
Jackson rode one, and Robert was supported on the 
other by his companions. Thus wearily and sadly, did 
they perform their melancholy journey of more than 
forty miles, through a country blighted by the ravages 
of war, as if the lightnings of Heaven had scathed it. 
Within two hours' ride of the Waxhaws, they were 
overtaken by a shower of rain, by which the company 
were completely drenched. The smallpox was driven 
in on both the boys ; Robert died in two days : and 
Andrew at once became delirious. The fever raged 
violently for several days, and his case was regarded 
nearly hopeless. The kind nursing of his patient and 
devoted mother, and the attentions of" his physician, at 
length triumphed over the disease, and restored him to 
consciousness and health. 

He had scarcely recovered his strength, when his 
mother, with characteristic energy and fortitude, in 
company with four or five other ladies, providing 
themselves with such necessaries as could be conve- 
niently carried on horseback, set out to visit a number 
of the Waxhaw settlers, including some of the Craw- 
fords, who had been taken by the enemy, and were 
confined on board the Charleston prison-ship — whose 
history, like that of the Old Jersey, at New York, 

8 



182 ANDREW JACKSON. 

is but a tale of unmitisjated horror and siifTerinsf. 
These goo>] Samaritan women reached Charleston, 
obtained permir^sion to visit the vessel — a privilege that 
had always been refused to relatives and friends of the 
other sex — and delivered the supplies which they had 
brought. Mrs. Jackson, however, never returned from 
this errand of love and mercy. Enfeebled by constant 
care and privation, worn down by the numerous hard- 
ships and fatigues which she had endured, she was 
seized with the fever prevailing among the prisoners, 
which srx»n terminated her existence. She was buried 
near Ihe enemy's lines, in the vicinity of Charleston, in 
an unknown grave ; — but her memory, in after times, 
was doubly honored, ns that of the noble, self-sacriiicing 
mother, of Anslrew Jackson ! 

Solitary and alone, her orphan son, at the time when 
he most needed the care and advice of a parent, was 
cast upon the world, to bulTet, as he might, the billows 
of adverse fortune. His home was, indeed, desolate. 
Like Logan, there ran not a drop of his blood in the 
veins of any living creature. IMother and brothers, — 
all ha<l perished — the victims of English cruelty ! — Is 
it to be wondered, then, that he cherished such a feel- 
ing of animosity towards the Britisli name ; or that he 
hated everything akin to oppression, with a hatred so 
dee]) and fervent ? 

Early in the summer of 1781, the British voluntarily 
evacuated, or were driven from, all their advanced 
posts outside of Orangeburg. General Greene retired 
M'ith his army, during the hot season, to the hills of 
Santoe, but again made his appearance in the lower 
country, near the clo.se of the month of August, with 



CLOSE OF THE WAR. 183 

his command refreshed and reinvigorated. In Septem- 
ber, he fought the indecisive battle at Eutaw Springs. 
The pahii of victory was disputed, but the substantial 
advantages of the action were his; and when the cam- 
paign closed, the enemy were cooped up in Charleston 
and Savannah. — In October, the war was finally ter- 
minated, by the surrender of Cornwallis at York town. 

After the evacuation of Camden, the Waxhaw set- 
tlers, or rather, those of them who had survived the 
perils of war, found the security and repose which had 
so long been denied. Andrew Jackson remained, for 
some time subsequent to the death of his mother, at 
the house of Major Thomas Crawford ; but, in conse- 
quence of a ditiiculty with Captain Galbrailh, an Amer- 
ican commissary, whose quarters were at the same 
place, and who became offended with him for some 
trilling cause, he afterwards entered the family of Mr. 
Joseph White, an uncle of Mrs. Crawford. Mr. White's 
son was a saddler, and Andrew, though sulT'ering all 
the while with the fever and ague, entered his shop, 
and assisted him as far as he was able. 

Unfortunately for him, the enemy still remained in 
the possession of Charleston, and many of its wealthiest 
and most polished citizens resided, temporarily, at the 
Waxhaws, and in the neighborhood. It was quite 
natural, in the reaction of his ardent temperament, 
after the first shock of his sad bereavement had passed 
away, that a carelessness and recklessness of disposition 
should be manifested. His associates were the young 
men from the city, and, with them, he spent most of 
his time in idle sports and amusements. The studies, 
which had been necessarily interrupted during the war, 



184 ANDREAV JACKSON. 

were totally neglected ; his books were thrown aside ; 
and a large portion of his little patrimony was squan- 
dered, in the vain efl'ort to compete with his more 
wealthy associates, in the liberality of his expenditures. 
When they returned to Charleston, in the winter of 
1784, he followed them on a fine mare belonging to 
him. He found some of his old companions in the 
tavern where he stopped, with whom he engaged in a 
gama- of dice, called " Rattle and Snap." His mare 
was staked against a sum of money — and he won. 
Inspired by a sudden thought, he pocketed the money, 
jiaid his bill, and returned home ; with a determination, 
to which he inflexibly adhered, to change his course of 
life. 

How many there are, who would have yielded, like 
Andrew Jackson, to the Circean charms and fascina- 
tions of a career of dissipation ! — how few, like him, 
M'ould have jiaused at the very entrance of the vortex, 
and, in an instant, effected an entire reformation I — 
The descent to Avernus is easy, said the Cumaian 
Sibyl :— 

" SeJ revocare gradum, superasque evadere ad auras, 
Hoc opus, hie labor est." 

Had he remained in Charleston another day, perhaps 
another hour, he might have gone down to an early 
grave, unhonored and unlamented. Though he came 
off conqueror in a dozen well-fought fields, this was the 
noblest of his victories — the conquest over himself ! 

Arrived at the Waxhaws, young Jackson collected 
together the remains of his small property, and, bidding 
adieu to his friends, repaired to Salisbury, in North 



EMIGRATES TO TENNESSEE. 185 

Carolina ; wliere he commenced the study of the law, 
in the otlice of Spruce McCay, an eminent counsellor, 
and afterwards a distinguished judge of that state. 
His untiring industry and zeal, his talents, and his 
correct and manly deportment, soon won the favorable 
esteem of Judge McCay, and other prominent citizens 
of North Carolina, whose acquaintance he formed. His 
professional studies were completed under Colonel John 
Stokes, and, in 17S6, he was admitted to the bar. He 
remained in the state about two years subsequent to 
this, constantly gaining ground in the regard of his 
new friends and acquaintances ; and in 1788, at the 
age of twenty-one, without solicitation on his part, he 
was appointed by the governor, solicitor for the western 
district, which afterwards became the state of Tennessee. 

Near the close of the year 1788, in company with 
John JMcNairy, the newly appointed judge of the west- 
ern district, he crossed the mountains, for the purpose 
of entering upon his official duties, and establishing 
himself in practice. Jonesborough was then the prin- 
cipal seat of justice, and they remained there for several 
months. 

The country was rapidly filling up with the hunters 
of North Carolina and Virginia, — " the pioneers of civi- 
lization," — v.'ho fearlessly entered the unbroken forest, 
with the axe in one hand and the rifle in the other. The 
territory lying between the Ohio and Tennessee rivers 
had long before received the name of Kentuckee, or the 
''• Bloody Land," on account of its being the battle, as 
well as the hunting ground, of the Northern and South- 
ern Indians. The valley of the Cumberland river con- 
tained some of the most fertile and beautiful lands, and 



186 ANDREW JACKSON. 

abounded in the finest game. The principal tide of em- 
igration, therefore, naturally turned in this direction, 
notwithstantlingthe settlers thereby brought upon them- 
selves the animosity of both parties of Indians. 

In 1789, Judge McNairy, and his friend, first visited 
the infant settlements on the Cumberland, including 
that at French Creek, near the present site of Nash- 
ville. Most of the settlers resided in stations, — fre- 
quently built on the damping grounds of the butlalo, — 
which were usually connected by the traces of the wild 
beasts, that everywhere intersected the surrounding 
forests. The log cabin was the abode of all classes, — 
but these primitive dwellings were, perhajjs, oftener 
tenanted by happiness and joy, than the marble palaces 
of the great and opulent. Theirs was a life of peril, 
indeed ; but it was well suited to Jackson's adventu- 
rous disposition, and he gladly shared their dangers and 
vicissitudes, and participated in their sports and fes- 
tivities. 

He was still undecided in regard to locating perma- 
nently in the district, when he arrived at the settlements 
on the Cumberland. He found, however, that the 
debtor class constituted a large proportion of the popu- 
lation, and that, having retained the only lawyer in 
West Tennessee in their interest, they were enabled to 
set their creditors at defiance. The latter flocked 
around him in crowds, and in a few days after his arri- 
val he issued a great number of writs. Threats of 
personal violence were employed, in vain, to intimidate 
him ; they had only the opposite effect, and induced him 
to remain, and establish himself in the neighborhood of 
Nashville. At that time there were no hotels, or reg- 



II 



ADVENTURES IN THE WILDERNESS, 1^7 



alar boarJing-iiouses, in the country, and none wero 
needed, — as travellers, men of business, and professional 
men, were cheerfully entertained by private families. 
Jackson, and the late Judge Overton, boarded together, 
with Mrs. Donelson, the widow of Colonel John Donel- 
son, who had, some years previous, emigrated from Vir- 
ginia to Kentucky, and thence to Tennessee, 
r- Business of a public, or private nature, often called 
Jackson to Jonesborough, about two hundred miles dis- 
tant from Nashville, from which it was separated by a 
dense wilderness, with only here and there a small sta- 
tion. In those days, a journey was not the pastime 
which it has latterly become ; and the traveller enjoyed 
few of the comforts, and none of the luxuries, which 
modern civilization has introduced. A horse ; a rifle, 
to be slung over the shoulder ; a hunting knife ; a port- 
manteau, containing a few clothes and provisions ; and 
a blanket, — constituted his preparations for the road. 
Sometimes journeys were performed singly, but, more 
generally, in companies. At night, the travellers lighted 
a hre with a tinder-box, or the flash of a rifle ; and 
their horses were picketed. If they were supplied with 
bacon, or game, it was roasted on a stick; otherwise, 
jerked meat, parched maize, and the tough corn-dodger, 
formed their frugal repast. After partaking of this, sen- 
tinels were posted, if an attack from the Indians was 
apprehended ; and, wrapping themselves in their blan- 
kets, they lay down to sleep, with naught but the blue 
canopy of heaven over their heads. 

Numerous anecdotes are related of the fearlessness 
and intrepidity displayed by Andrew Jackson, when 
performing these weary pilgrimages through the forests 

7 



188 ANDREW JACKSON. 



of Tennessee. On one occasion, in the month of March, i 
he was on his way from Jonesborou^h to the Cumber- 1 
land, with three comjianions, and reached the east side 
of the Emory, just below the gap in the mountains, l 
shortly after dark. The fires of a large party of In- ■ 
dians being discovered on the opposite bank, he instantly »j 
assumed the direction of affairs, and, enjoining silence 
upon liis comrades, led them back some distance into 
the mountains. They then left the road at different 
points, in order to elude pursuit, — reunited again,, and 
proceeded up the stream, until two o'clock in the after- 
noon of the following day, when they attempted to cross 
it, at a basin between two cataracts. 

A raft was constructed of logs bound firmlv together 

O »/ CD 

with hickory withes, upon which their clothes, blankets, 
saddles, rifles and ammunition, were placed ; Jackson 
and one of his companions intending to cross first with 
these, and then, at a second trip, with their comrades, 
to swim the horses over alongside the raft. But on 
pushing from the shore, the under-tow seized the frail 
craft, and hurried it rapidly down the stream. Jackson 
and his friend vainly exerted themselves to arrest its 
progress ; they were fast nearing the brink of the cata- 
ract, when the former, wrenching one of the rude oars 
from its fastenings, spi-ang to the stern, and braced him- 
self there ; at the same time holding out the oar to his 
companions on shore. They eagerly seized it, and drew 
the raft safe to land, just as it was quivering on the 
edge of the fall. On being ohided for his too venture- 
some disposition, Jackson replied, "Amiss is as good as 
a mile ; you see how near I can graze danger — come 
on, and I will save you yet." — The route up the stream 



DESERTED BY HIS GUIDE. 189 

was now resumed, and, after spending another niglit, 
supperlcss, in the woods, they found a ford the next day, 
at which they crossed, and ultimately reached a log 
cabin on the road, about forty miles in rear of the In- 
dian encampment. ^ 

At another time, he reached Bean's Station, the ap- 
pointed rendezvous of a party with whom he designed 
to cross the wilderness, on the evening after they had 
left. Nowise daunted by the perils of the way, he pro- 
vided himself with a guide, and set out to overtake 
them. lie travelled all night, and, in the gray of the 
morning, came to the fires just deserted by the party be- 
fore him. Pushing on, with increased speed, he soon 
discovered the trail of a body of Indians, twenty-two in 
number, who were evidently pursuing his friends in 
front. He still followed on, until he was close upon the 
savages, when the guide began to hesitate about advanc- 
ing further, and finally refused, absolutely, to proceed. 
This was an unexpected dilemma, but Jackson neither 
feared danger, nor was he the man to desert his friends. 
Dividing provisions with his timid guide, the latter re- 
turned to the station, and he continued on cautiously, 
in the opposite direction. Presently he found that the 
Indians had turned oft' to the right, as he supposed, to 
get ahead of the party, and lay an ambush for them, or 
attack them at night. He at once hastened forward 
with greater rapidity, and came up with his friends, as 
they were preparing to encamp for the night. Being 
apprised of their danger, in a few moments they were 
again in motion, and continued their march without 
halting, till the evening of the next day. Nothing 
further was heard from the Indians, till the party had 



190 AXDREW JACKSOX. 

reached their destination, in safety ; when it was ascer- 
tained that a company of hunters, who had refused to 
shelter theni in their I02: cabins, had been murdered by 
the same band of savages from whom they had so for- 
tunately escaped. 

Besides crossing the wilderness intervening between 1 
Jonesborough and the Cumberland twenty-two times, 
while the country was yet new, Jackson frequently 
volunteered, with others, to go out and meet parties of 
emigrants from Virginia, or the Carolinas, who were 
escorted half way by their friends in the states, or the 
settlers in East Tennessee. The same service was 
often performed for emigrants, or travellers, going from 
Nashville to Lexington. An occasion of this Ivind fur- 
nished him an opportunity to display his gallantry as 
well as bravery : — He was proceeding with a com])any, 
from Nashville to Lexington, among whom was a lady 
going to join her husband at the latter place. The 
second night out, she was suddenly taken sick, and, isi 
the morning, was unable to proceed on her journey. 
Disregarding her situation, a number of the party pre- 
pared their horses as usual, and were about to resume 
the march. Jackson earnestly remonstrated against 
leaving the woman alone in the forest, but, finding 
words of no avail, and that they insisted on proceeding, 
lie levelled his rifle, and solemnly declared that he 
would slioot the first man who put foot in the stirrup. 
His companions cowed before the chivalric rage that 
lighted up his cheek, and kindled in his eye ; and they 
consented to remain for a day at the encampment, at 
the expiration of which the lady was able to travel. 

As the settlers in Kentucky were exposed to the ir- 






RACHAEL DONELSON. 



191 



niptions of the Shawanese, so those in Tennessee were 
liable to similar visitations from the Choctaws and 
Cherokees. Whenever the savages had committed any 
d«^predations, volunteer parties were always formed to 
]mrsue them. Andrew Jackson was usually one of the 
first to make his appearance at the rendezvous. He 
once accompanied a party, between forty and fifty 
strong, under Colonel Elijah Robertson, on an expedi- 
tion of this character, to the head of a creek flowing 
into Duck river. It was then proposed, that a part of 
the company should penetrate through the cane-brakes, 
a distance of ten miles, to the river, where the Indians 
were supposed to have encamped. Colonel R. Weakly, 
with Jackson and fifteen others, volunteered for the 
enterprise. It was accomplished with great gallantry ; 
the savages were surprised, and fled without firing a 
gun, — leaving their camp, and their arms and ammu- 
nition, in the hands of their pursuers. 

Jackson was repeatedly engaged in affairs of the same 
kind, and acquired a high, and wide-spread reputation, 
for his bravery and skill. He also became well-known 
to the red warriors, and received from them the epithets 
of " Sharp Knife" and "Pointed Arrow." The most 
important expedition in which he was concerned, was 
undertaken in 1794, when a large party from Nashville 
and its neighborhood, including himself, proceeded 
against the Indian town of Nickajack, near the Ten- 
nessee river, and razed it to the ground. 

When Andrew Jackson entered the family of IMrs. 
Donelson as a boarder, her daughter, Rachael, who had 
married a man by the name of Robards, in Kentucky, 
bnt had separated from him on account of his violent 



192 ANDREW JACKSON. 

temper and vicions habits, resided with her. Judge 
Overton and himself occupied another cabin, a few 
steps distant from that in which Mrs. Donelson lived, 
but met with her family, at the same table. Mrs. 
Robards was as distinguished for her beauty, her 
sweetness of temper, and her winning deportment, as 
was her husband for the possession of the opposite 
qualities. Through the mediation of Judge Overton, 
Robards was at one time reconciled to his wife, rejoined 
her at Mrs. Donelson's, and commenced preparations 
for erecting a cabin, on a tract of land that he had 
purchased, in which he intended to reside. 

Jackson was then a young -man, frank and engaging 
in his manners, and fond of female society. He un- 
doubtedly paid Mrs. Robards many flattering attentions, 
which — neither thinkinir ausjht of evil, or cherishin<]j an 
impure thought — were reciprocated as they deserved, 
with kindness and friendly esteem, but nothing more. 
So far from rendering her husband more morose and ill- 
tempered, this should only have led him to appreciate 
better her charms and social virtues, and encouraged 
him to become more pleasing and agreeable. But lagos 
were not wanting to instil the doubts and suspicions of 
jealousy, had not his gloomy and distrustful tempera- 
ment predisposed him to such impressions. She was, 
in consequence, rendered very unhappy. On being 
made acquainted with this fact, Jackson sought an in- 
terview with her husband, and remonstrated with him, 
in a manly and iionorable way. This was of no avail, 
and he then left Mrs. Donelson's, and took board at 
Mansker's Station. 

The excited jealousy of the husband could not be aX- 



HIS MARRIAGE. 193 

layctl, however; and, in a few months, ho abandoned 
his wife a second time, and started for= Kentucky, — de- 
claring to a companion on the road, that he designed 
never to return. Mrs. Robards now determined tliat 
the separation should be final ; and on being afterwards 
informed, that he intended to visit Tennessee and take 
iicr back with him to Kentucky, under tlie advice of 
lier friends, she accompanied the family of Colonel 
Starlc to Natchez, in the spring of 1791. Stark was 
an elderly man, and fearing that the Indians might at- 
tack him, he invited Jackson to make one of the party. 
The latter, perhaps unvv-isely, — though he certainly 
never regretted it, — accepted the invitation, and de- 
scended the rivers with them, to Natchez. 

Robards had previously applied to the Ijcgislature of 
Virginia for a divorce, and, soon after the return of 
Jackson to Nashville, the intelligence was received that 
his application had been granted. Desirous of testify- 
ini? to the world, in the hisfhest and most solemn man- 
ner, his confidence in her purity and innocence — pleased, 
alike, with the charms of her person, and the graces of 
her mind — and deeming her at perfect liberty to form a 
new connection — Jackson forthwith repaired to Nat- 
chez, and tendered his hand to iNIrs. Robards. She at 
first hesitated, but finally accepted him. They were 
married in the fall, and she returned with him to the 
Cumberland, where she was greeted with the warm 
and affectionate congratulations of her relatives and 
friends. 

Two years after his marriage, — in December, 1793, 
— Jackson was on his way to Jonesborough, with Judge 
Overton, when he learned, for the first time, equally to 



194 wNDREW JACKSON. 

his cliagrin and surprise, that the intelligence received 
in 1791, and upon which he had acted, was incorrect. — 
Robards had, in 1791, procured the passage of an act 
in the Virginia Legislature, authorizing a suit to bo 
brought for a divorce in a court in Kentucky, which 
suit had just been determined in his favor, — no opposi- 
tion, of course, being made to the proceedings. Com- 
munications between the Atlantic country and the in- 
terior were then very irregular, and the exact particu- 
lars of the aflair were not known, or inquired into, as 
it was universally supposed in Tennessee, that the di- 
vorce had been actually granted. On his return home, 
in January, 1794, Jackson took out a license, and was 
now regularly married. 

The circumstances of his acquaintance and marriage 
\vith Mrs. Robards, were long after seized upon by his 
opponents, when he became connected with the politi- 
cal controversies of the day, as a candidate for the pres- 
idency, and were made the foundation of unmerited 
and groundless calumnies. There were features in the 
case, which, unexplained, might appear suspicious ; but 
the evidence of all who were personally acquainted with 
them, whose assertions are worthy of a moment's con- 
sideration, acquit both parties of blame, and bear wit- 
ness to the correct demeanor of JMrs. Robards, and the 
chivalric conduct of Andrew Jackson. — -" While he 
would have sacrificed his life," says his biographer, "to 
prevent Mrs. Robards' ffiUijig unwillingly into the hands 
of her cruel tormentor, iier husband though he was, he 
never cast a look vipon her, or indulged a thought, un- 
worthy of the purest knight in the days of honorable 
chivalry. But, when no longer restrained by laM', 



ANIMOSITY OF THE DEBTOR CLASS. 195 

honor or religion, pity, admiration, and a species of re- 
gret, though free from gnilt, yet akin to remorse, kin- 
dle 1 into love as pure and as holy as ever glowed in the 
heart of man. Nor was the object unworthy of this 
exalted passion. The united testimony of all who had 
the pleasure of her acquaintance, the happiness which 
during life she shed over the domestic circle, radiatins: 
into the cabins of her servants and the houses of her 
neighbors, and, above all, the sacred fervor with which 
the bosom on which she rested in youth, cherishes her 
memory, bear unequivocal testimony, that she was one 
of the best of those beings whom God has given as the 
companion and solace of man."* 

After his marriage, Jackson devoted himself with 
more assiduity than ever, to the practice of his profes- 
sion. His firm and independent course in espousing 
the cause of the creditors, though it elevated him in 
the esteem of the better part of the community, ren- 
dered the debtors peculiarly inimical towards him. 
His daring and prowess were so well known, however, 
that those who were nominally his equals in standing, 
dared not assail him ; but they stimulated others to do 
so, belonging to the very lowest class of bullies and des- 
peradoes, so many of whom are always to be found in a 
new country, who had neither character nor self-respect 
to lose, but were not deficient in that brutal courage, 
which the philosopher of Ferney terms, " a fortunate 
quality, of which fools partake as well as great men." 

A flax-breaker, of great strength and courage, was 
the first person instigated to attack Jackson ; but the 
latter soon tamed his spirit with his own winding-blades, 

♦ Kendall's Life of Jackson. 



196 ANDREW JACKSON. 

the only weapon within reach. A noted bully next as- 
saulted him, while he was con\ersing with a gentleman 
on business, at a court in Sumner C(mnty. Jackson 
seized a slab, and in a few seconds obliged the despe- 
rado to make his escape into the woods. — These en- 
counters resulted so unfavorably to those who were 
induced to come in contact with him, that he was 
ever after exempt from annoyances of a similar char- 
acter. 

In the course of his practice as a lawyer, Jackson 
discovered that extensive frauds had been committed in 
the North Carolina Land-Office, which he deemed it 
his duty, as the former attorney of that State, to ex- 
pose. Through his instrumentality, the perpetrators 
were indicted and punished. Some of the most promi- 
nent citizens of the western district were directly, or 
indirectly, concerned in these transactions, and had 
profited largely by them. Consequently, he incurred 
their hostility ; and they sought by every means to in- 
jure him. In the state of society then existing, a man, 
like him, exposed to tlie hatred of powerful enemies, 
may be said to have constantly carried his life in his 
hand. Unawed by threats, he pui'sued his way steadily 
and unerringly — daily adding to the number of his 
friends, and gaining ground in the confidence and re- 
gard of the wise and good. 

The necessary preliminary measures for the forma- 
tion of a state government, were taken by the citizens 
of Tennessee, in 1795 ;* and Andrew Jackson was 

* In 1790, the "Territory South of the Ohio," of which Tennessee 
formed a part was erected. Kentucky was admitted into the Union as 
a State, in 1792. 



REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATOR IN CONGRESS. 197 

chosen one of the delegates to the convention, without 
even ofFering himself as a candidate. The forest Solons 
and Numas composing that body, met at Knoxville, in 
the wilderness, on the eleventh of January, 1796, and 
adjourned on the sixth day of February following ; hav- 
ing, in the short space of less than four weeks, framed 
and adopted a state constitution, which, for its republi- 
can simplicity, compared most favorably with those of 
other states. 

On the first day of June, 1796, Tennessee was ad- 
mitted into the Union as a State, and became entitled 
to one representative i]i Congress. Andrew Jackson 
was elected to the office, with great unanimity, and 
took his seat in the House of Representatives on the 
fifth of December, 1796. His reputation and popular- 
ity continuing to increase, he was chosen a senator in 
Congress the following year, when he had just reached 
the age prescribed by the Constitution. He appeared 
in the Senate of the United States on the twenty-sec- 
ond of November, 1797. At this session, the alien and 
sedition laws were passed. Jackson coincided and 
voted with the republican members, and was therefore 
in the minoritv. During the session, he became so 
much dissatisfied with the course of the administration, 
to which he was opposed in sentiment, that he returned 
home in April, 1798, and shortly after resigned his seat. 
He was succeeded by his friend and neighbor, Daniel 
Smith. 

Upon his resignation of the office of senator, Jackson 
was appointed, by the Legislature of Tennessee, Judge 
of the Supreme Court of Law and Equity. The office 
was conferred on him unsolicited, and was accepted 



198 ANDREW JACKSON. 

■vrith reluctance. As a lawyer, he liad been distin- 
guished for his fair and lionorable dealing ; for his ab- 
horrence of low tricks and artifices ; and for the ability 
with which he seized the strong points of a case, and 
presented them to a court or jury : — as a judge, he be- 
came equally well known, for his firmness and inde- 
pendence ; for his integrity of purpose ; and his plain, 
common sense adjudications. 

His first court was held at Jonesborough, at which a 
man, by the name of Russell Bean, was indicted for 
cutting off the ears of his infant child, in a drunken 
frolic. The sheriff dared not arrest the offender, who 
was notorious for his strength and ferocity, though 
present in the courtyard, and returned to the court, that 
he would not be taken. Judge Jackson told the officer 
that such a return was an absurdity, and that the man 
must be taken, even though it became necessary to 
summon the posse comitatus. When the court ad- 
journed for dinner, the sheriff summoned the judge and 
his colleagues, as part of the posse. Jackson saw that 
the officer desired to avoid performing ins duty, and 
therefore accompanied him. Learning that Bean was 
armed, he provided himself with a loaded pistol. At 
sight of him, the former attempted to make his escape ; 
but the judge directing him to stop and submit to the 
law, in a tone that showed he was not to be trifled with, 
his weapons were thrown down, and he quietly surren- 
dered. This incident was not lost upon other turbulent 
spirits who had previously treated courts and officers 
with contempt, and nothing of the kind was afterwards 
attempted. 

His health beginning to fail under the severe labor, 



DIFFICULTY AVITIl GOVERNOR SEVIER. 199 

both mental and physical, required of him in tlic per- 
formance of his olTicial duties, Jackson determined to 
resign the judgeship ; but, when his intentions became 
pubHo, he was urged, in such flattering terms, to aban- 
don his design, in a communication addressed to him by 
some of the most prominent citizens of the state, and a 
large number of the members of the Legislature, that 
he consented to remain in the office. 

In 1801, an election was hold by the brigadiers and 
field-officers of Major General Conway's division, to 
fill the vacancy occasioned by his death. Andrew 
Jackson, and John Sevier, formerly governor of the 
state, were competitors for the office ; and the vote was 
equally divided between them. The appointment then 
devolved upon Governor Roane, who wisely conferred it 
on Andrew Jackson. 

Governor Sevier was connected, to some extent, with 
a combination of land jobbers at Nashville, associated 
together for the purpose of manufacturing fraudulent 
grants of land, which Jackson had aided in breaking up. 
This circumstance, and the preference of Governor 
Roane, rendered him a most implacable enemy and op- 
ponent. In 1803, he was a candidate for re-election as 
governor, and in the course of the canvass, his antipa- 
thy towards Judge Jackson, was imbibed by his party 
friends. This was particularly the case in East Ten- 
nessee. In the fall, the Judge proceeded to Jones- 
borough, to hold his court; and, having been taken se- 
riously ill on the road, he retired to his room, immc- 
diately after his arrival, and lay down on the bed. In 
a few moments he was waited on by a friend, who 
bcirged him to lock his door — informinc; him that a large 



200 ANDREW JACKSON. 

mob had collected, under a Colonel Harrison, and loudly 
threatened to tar and feather him. Jackson declined 
securing his door, but throwing it wide open, sent his 
fi-iend to Colonel Harrison, with the message, that ho 
was ready to receive him and his party, whenever they 
chose to wait on him, and that he hoped the colonel's 
chivalry would induce him to lead his men, and not fol- 
low them. — This bold message operated like a charm ; 
the mob dispersed ; Colonel Harrison apologized for his 
conduct, and thereafter remained on good terms with 
Jaclison. 

The next court held by the latter, was at Knoxville, 
where the Legislature were then in session. They had 
just investigated the land frauds, of which mention has 
been made, and had found some evidence tendinsf to 
implicate Governor Sevier. His excellency evinced a 
great deal of exasperation, and on leaving the court- 
house, on the first day of the term. Judge Jackson 
found a large crowd gathered in front of the building, 
in the midst of which was Governor Sevier, with a 
sword in his hand, haranguing them in a violent man- 
ner. An altercation ensued between them, in which 
the governor was the aggressor, and the Judge sent him 
a challenge. This was accepted, but the governor failed 
to give the promised meeting, and Jackson at once pub- 
lished him in the usual form. A second meeting was 
then appointed to take place, though without any formal 
arransfement. 

Jackson repaired to the designated spot, but the gov- 
ernor failed to meet him. After v/aiting two days, he 
set out to return to Knoxville, but had proceeded only 
a short distance, when he encountered Governor Sevier, 



RETIRES TO PRIVATE LIFE. 201 

escorted by about twenty men, and armed with a brace 
of pistols and a sword. His friend in.stant!y bore a 
challenge to the governor, who refused to receive it. 
Jackson was provided with a brace of pistols and a 
cane. On the return of his friend, with the insulting 
message of the governor, he levelled his cane, as the 
knight, in olden times, couched his spear in the rest, 
and dashed furiously upon his opponent. The latter 
hastily dismounted, in order to avoid the shock, but, in 
so doing, trode on the scabbard of his sword, and was 
thus rendered incapable of resistance. In the gover- 
nor's escort there were mutual friends of both parties, 
who interfered to prevent any further collision, and 
Jackson accompanied them back to Knoxville. 

Although Jackson was always prompt to defend 
himself from insult or i^jur3^ these altercations and 
disputes were by no means congenial to his spirit, and, 
anticipating their more frequent recurrence, for the 
reason that a number of cases, growing out of the 
fraudulent land sales, were about to be brought before 
him for decision, he concluded to retire from the bench ; 
and his resignation was accepted by the I^egislature, on 
the twenty-fourth of July, 1804, about six years after 
his original appointment. 

Previous to his resignation of the judgeship, the ser- 
vices of General Jackson, in a military capacity, were 
invoked by the General Government, in consequence 
of the threatening aspect of its relations with Spain, 
who had taken umbrage at the purchase of Louisiana 
from France. Preparations were made to reinforce 
General Wilkinson, then at Natchez, at the head of a 
email force, with fifteen hundred men from the upper 

9* 



202 ANDREAV JACKSON. 

country, including five hundred cavalry from Tennessee. 
In October, 1803, General Jackson was requested to 
procure, witliout delay, a sufficient number of boats to 
transport the troops to New Orleans, and to keep them 
in readiness. The request was complied with ; the 
boats were procured ; and the general tendered his ser- 
vices to the government if they should be needed. 

The firmness, caution, and prudence, of Jefferson, 
rendered a resort to arms unnecessary ; and in Feb- 
ruary, 1804, General Jackson sold the boats prepared 
for the expedition down the IMississippi. After resign- 
ing the office of judge, General .Jackson retired to a 
plantation on the Cumberland, which he had purchased ; 
to enjoy, what he had long coveted, the quiet scenes of 
domestic life, its gentleness and tranquillity, and the 
society of his devoted wife. His fortune was not large, 
but amply sufficient to satisfy his wants. He de- 
voted most of his time to superintending the labor on 
his plantation, setting an example of methodical indus- 
try, and carefiil economy, worthy of general imitation, 
and often wielding the axe, or guiding the plougli, with 
his own hands. Fond of society, and frank and gene- 
rous by nature, ho was distinguished far and wide for 
his hospitality ; and it was remarked of him, that, 
" though he was a private citizen, he was the most 
public man in Tennessee." 

He was passionately fond of fine horses, and took 
every pains to improve his stock, by importations from 
the Atlantic States. Like other planters around him, 
he brought his favorite animals out upon tiie race- 
courses, and, though not a sportsman, in the ordinary 
acceptation of the term, made many a venture upon 



HOSTILK MEETliNG W iT!l DICKINSON. 203 

their relative speed. A circnmstance of this kind gave 
rise to a most unfortunate affair : 

A match race was agreed upon by hiin, and a Mr. 
Erwin and his son-in-law, Charles Diclcinson, between 
their two horses, for a wager of two thousand dollars, 
with a forfeiture of eight hundred dollars, to be paid in 
cash notes. Erwin and Dickinson subsequently chose 
to pay the forfeit, and withdraw their horse. Some 
difficulty arose in regard to the character of the notes 
offered, but it was finally adjusted, to the apparent 
satisfaction of all parties. But the enemies of Jackson 
were anxious that he should fight a duel with Dickinson, 
who was- reputed to be the best shot in the country. 
Through them, the dispute was revived. Several pub- 
lications appeared in the newspapers, Dickinson grew 
more and more insulting, and at length made a direct 
imputation of cowardice. Jackson could endure his 
provocations no longer, and on the twenty-third of 
PiTay, 1806, sent him a challenge. It was accepted by 
Dickinson, and the meeting was arranged to take place 
at Harrison's ?vlilis, Kentucky, on the thirtieth instant. 

Dickinson spent the intervening time in practicing ; 
frequently boasting how often he had hit his opponent 
chalked out on a tree, and offering to bet that he would 
kill him. This was reported to General Jackson, and 
the effect on his excitable temperament may be imag- 
ined. The parties met, as had been agreed on. At 
the word, Dickinson fired, and the dust was seen to 
fly from the clothes of his antagonist. Jackson fired 
the next instant, and the other fell mortally wounded. 

The steadiness of nerve exhibited by General Jack- 
son on this occasion has often been the subject of com- 



204 ANDREW JACKSON. 

mendation, even with those who condemned the prac- 
tice, then not only tolerated, but actually encouraged, 
by nearly all classes and parties, in the section of coun- 
try in which he resided. It afterwards appeared, that 
he was himself severely wounded, at the time he fired; 
but his feelings had been so wrought upon, and the 
ardency of his temper was such, that he was insensible 
to physical suffering, and he declared to a friend, that 
he would have killed Dickinson, if he had been shijt 
through the brain ! 

Several years later, — in the summer of 1813, — Gen- 
eral Jackson was concerned in an affray with Colonel 
Thomas H. Benton^, so well and widely known, for 
many successive years, as a Senator in Congress, from 
the State of Missouri. The former had acted as the 
second of Governor Carroll, in a duel with a brother of 
Colonel Benton, which, the latter tliought, was incon- 
sistent with the friendly relations existing between 
himself and the general. An angry correspondence 
passed ; bitter recriminations were made on both sides ; 
and they afterwards encountered each other, and in- 
terchanged shots, at a public house in Nashville. In 
the affray. General Jackson's left arm was shattered 
by a pistol shot, and he v.^as confined to his room for 
several weeks. The imbittered feelings engendered 
during the progress of this controversy, were cherished 
for many years after the encounter, but they were sub- 
sequently entirely allayed ; and wh'en General Jackson 
became President of the United States, he had no firmer 
supporter, or warmer friend, than Colonel Benton. 

These personal controversies and altercations have 
been mentioned here, not because they afford valuable 



AARON BURR. 205 

examples wortliy, at this day, of imitation, but rather, 
for the reason, that they are not more iUnstrative of 
Jackson's nice sense of lionor, his stern will, and his 
indomitable courage, than of the rude state of society 
in which he lived. If, like General Wavne, he mani- 
fested " a constitutional attachment to the decision of 
the sM'ord," he, too, had a warm and generous heart ; 
and, though like the aroused lion, when he felt himself 
the object of wrong or injustice, no man possessed more 
of the gentler and softer affections of our natures. As 
Sir Walter Scott said of the Covenanter : " His faults 
were those of his times and associates, his virtues were 
eminently his own." 

Aaron Burr made his first appearance in the western 
country, prior to the completion of his arrangements for 
his mysterious expedition, in the spring of 1805, and, 
on two occasions, during the summer, spent several 
diiys in the family of General Jackson. The people of 
Tennessee, like all the residents in the valley of the 
Mississippi, were exceedingly hostile to the Spaniards ; 
and so long as Burr was supposed to be concerned in 
making arransfements for the invasion of Mexico, in 
the event of a war with Spain, General Jackson, with 
most of the influential citizens of that section, warmly 
seconded his projects. In 1806, Burr returned to the 
west and began his preparations. In the fall, the sus- 
picions of General Jackson were awakened, and the 
friendly intercourse between them entirely ceased. 
Whatever may have been the designs of Burr, he dared 
not reveal them to General Jackson, though he ever 
entertained a high opinion of him, and always men- 
tioned him in terms of respect. His patriotism was 



206 AXDREW JACK30^^ 

much too earnest and sincere to be tempted ; and, not- 
withstanding his previous intiraacy with Burr, the 
speciiil agent dispatched by the President to secure the 
arrest of the latter, was directed to 'call on him, with 
instructions to order oat a military force, if necessary. 
General Jackson promptly ordered out twelve compa- 
nies, but Burr had already left the mouth of the Cum- 
berland, and was on his way down the Mississippi ; 
and on ascertaining this fact, he dismissed his troops, 
and reported his proceedings to the government. 

Not long after General Jackson retired to private 
life, he entered into partnership with a merchant in 
Nashville. For a time their business appeared to be 
prosperous ; Jackson took no active j'sart in its manage- 
ment, but trusted everything to his associate. Some 
slight circumstances nt length aroused his fears, and, 
upon examination, he found that the firm was not only 
insolvent, but that their liabilities exceeded their as- 
sets, by many thousand dollars. But one course — that 
dictated by honor anJ right — could bo pursued. He 
instantly closed the business, sold his fine plantation 
wdiere he lived, paid off t'.ie debts of the firm, and re- 
moved to a log cabin on another plantation, to begin 
the world anew. By the exercise of strict economy 
and prudence, in a few years he once more gathered 
around him the fruits of prosperous industry. 

In 1811, General Jackson had occasion to visit 
Natchez, to bring up a number of negroes, who had 
become his property as the surety of a friend, or be- 
longed to a nephew; and, on reaching the station of 
the Choctaw agency, along which the road passed, he 
found seven or eight families of emigrants, and two 



■VVAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 207 

members of the Mississippi Legislative Council, whom 
the agent had detained, upon tlie pretence that it was 
necessary to have passports from the governor of Mis- 
sissippi Territory,' Justly indignant at this outrage, 
Jackson demanded what right he had to stop American 
citizens who were travelling on a public road. The agent 
replied, in a sharp tone, by inquiring whether he had 
a pass? "Yes, sir," said the general, warmly; "I 
always carry mine with me : — I am a free-born Ameri- 
can citizen ; and that, under the constitution and laws, 
is my passport to go wherever my business calls me !" 
He tjien told the emigrants to gear up their wagons, 
and if any one attempted to obstruct them, to shoot 
him down. He himself set the example, and proceeded 
on his journey, utterly regardless of the threats of the 
agent. 

Upon his return from Natchez, he was informed that 
the agent had collected fifty white men, and one hun- 
dred Indians, and intended to stop him unless he pro- 
duced a passport. On approaching the station, he 
armed his blacks with clubs and axes, and directed 
them to regard no order unless it emanated from him. 
The agent was at first inclined to stop him, but, being 
overawed by his firm and determined manner, made no 
attempt to oppose him. He afterwards reported the 
conduct of the oflicer to the President, and he was re- 
moved from the agency. 

The period now arrived which Jackson had long an- 
ticipated. — War was declared against the enemy of 
his country and his race, on the eighteenth of June, 
1812. It is easy to conceive the emotions which the 
intelligence must have awakened in his bosom. Recol- 



208 ANDREW JACKSON. 

lections of the past came rushing and thronging into his 
mind. The cycles of Time rolled backward. Again 
he stood upon the threshold of his desolate home, — on 
" the forest-clad banks of the Catawba," — orphaned by 
the cruelty of British officers and agents. Let him 
not be reproached, if motives of revenge quickened and 
sharpened his patriotism. His desire for vengeance was 
almost holy in its character — it was based on fraternal 
a.ffection, on filial love I 

When the tocsin of war was sounded, the glad, pro- 
longed echoes, came up from every valley and hamlet ; 
but in no quarter of the country was the response more 
enthusiastic, than in the valley of the Mississippi. Gen- 
eral Jackson immediately issued a stirring address to 
his division, twenty-live hundred men of which volun- 
teered to follovv^ wheresoever he saw fit to lead them. 
A tender of their services was made to the President, 
through Governor Blount, on the twenty-fifth of 
June, which was accepted on the eleventh of July. 
No immediate duty being required of the patriotic 
volunteers belonging to his division. General Jackson 
became impatient to participate in the struggle, and 
solicited the appointment of brigadier general in the 
regular army, which v/as conferred on General Win- 
chester. Could President Madison have foreseen the 
sad catastrophe that occurred on the banks of the Rai- 
sin, in the following January ; or had he possessed any 
correct idea of tiie military qualifications of General 
Jackson, we may well sujiposo that the latter would 
have been his choice. 

An opportunity, however, was soon presented to Jack- 
son, for taking the field. On the first of November, 



EXPEDITION TO NATCHEZ. 209 

Governor Blount issued an order, in conformity with a 
requisition from the War Department, directing him 
to organize and equip fifteen hundred infantry and 
riflemen, with whom he was instructed to descend the 
river to New Orleans, and reinforce General Wilkinson, 
then commanding that department. The necessary 
j)roclamation was issued, and, on the tenth of Decem- 
ber, upwards of two thousand men rendezvoused at 
Nashville, many of whom had come miles upon miles, 
through cold, and sleet, and snow, undaunted by the 
rigors of the climate, and intent only on obeying the 
call of their country. On the thirteenth instant, the . 
organization of the command, which consisted of one 
regiment of cavalry, not embraced in the requisition, 
but enrolled with the consent of Governor Blount, un- 
der Colonel Coffee, and two regiments of infantry, 
under Colonels Hall and T. H. Benton, was fully com- 
pleted. 

Numerous diliiculties were yet to be encountered 
before the troops could be put in motion. Arms had 
been sparingly furnished by the government, and funds 
fur tlie payment of the men had not been provided. 
Discontents naturally arose, and a mutiny was threat- 
ened. The firmness and determination of General 
Jackson prevented any outbreak, and his energy and 
perseverance ultimately overcame every obstacle. On 
the thirty-first of De(5ember, Colonel Coffee commenced 
his march with the mounted men, six hundred and 
seventy strong, by the overland route, to Natchez. On 
the seventh and eighth of January, 1813, General Jack- 
son embarked on the Cumberland, in flat boats, with 
the two infantry regiments, nurnlsering about fourteen 



210 ANDREW JACKSON. 

hundred. Doscendincj the rivers slowly, — his pro!jrcss ; 
being constantly impeded by large masses of floating 
ice, — he reached Natciiez on the fifteenth of February, 
near which he found the cavalry under Colonel Coffoe. 
At this point, General Jackson was met by a request 
from General Wilkinson, whose headquarters were at 
New Orleans, to halt his command, and report io him 
his force and instructions. Wilkinson held the rank of 
brigadier general in the regular army, with the brevet 
of major general ; and it is not unlikely, that he sus- 
pected it was the intention of the government, that 
Jackson should svipersede him. His request, doubtless, 
was prompted by this apjirehension. As there was no 
indication of an attack on New Orleans, Jackson cheer- 
fully complied with it.' Natchez was a much more 
salubrious position for his trooyjs, and having disem- 
barked them, he marched to Washington, a kv/ miles 
distant, where a cantonment had been previously estab- 
lished by a corps of regulars. The troops vrere placed 
in comfortable quarters, and a strong guard was de- 
tailed to protect the boats at Natchez. 

Camp regulations were now adopted, and strict orders 
issued by the commanding general, to proceed with the 
discipline and instruction of the troops. Becoming ini- 
])atient for active duty, he wrote to the Secretary of 
War on the first of I\Iarch, suggesting the employment 
of his force on the northern iron tier, if there was no 
pro.spect of invasion in the south, or if Congress did not 
authorize the taking pos.session of Florida. This sug- 
gestion was repeated in a second letter written on the 
seventh of March. Before these letters reached Wash- 
ington, an order had been issued from the War Depart- 



RETURN HOME. 211 

ment, directing him, on the receipt thereof, to consider 
his force dismissed from the service, and to take meas- 
ures for the dehvery of all articles of public property in 
his possession, to Cleneral Wilkinson. This unfechng 
mandate concluded with a cold tender of thanks to 
himself and the corps under his command. 

Jackson was fairly astounded at the blow. His 
whole command, officers and men, joined in denoimcing, 
in unmeasured terms, the Secretary of War, General 
Armstrong, by whom the order was issued. He was 
still more indignant, when he discovered the probable 
key to the movement, in a letter from General Wilkin- 
son, who suggested his encouraging the regular recruit- 
ing service from the troops he commanded, " in an 
appropriate general order." Jackson did no such thing ; 
— but, when a recruiting officer made his appearance, 
informed him that if he attempted to seduce a single 
volunteer from the corps, he would drum him out of 
the camp. 

The patriotic volunteers who had accompanied Gen- 
eral Jaclvson to Natchez were mostly young men — the 
flower of West Tennessee — the sons and brothers of his 
dearest friends and neighbors. The order he had re- 
ceived, required him to abandon these men, who looked 
up to him as a parent, in a strange land, five hundred 
miles from their homes ; to deprive them of their arms, 
their tents and provisions ; and to leave the sick uncared 
for, and unattended. This he could not, and did not do. 
He immediately wrote to the Secretary of War, de- 
nouncing his order, in no very honied Avords, and to the 
President, complaining of its barbarity, and giving his 
reasons for partially disregarding it. The necessary 



212 ANDREW JACKSON. 

orders were then given to provide wagons and supplies ; 
the men were directed to retain their arms ; he borrowed 
five thousand dollars of a merchant in Natchez, on his 
own responsibility, to make up deficiencies ; and, as 
soon as everything could be got in readiness, set out on 
his return march with his whole command, — declaring 
that not a single man should be left behind, " who had 
any life in him." 

Two hundred miles of the route lay through the 
Choctaw and Cliickasaw country, and the only essential 
service rendered by the expedition was this homeward 
march, which overawed the Indians, and deterred them 
from joining the hostile Creeks and Cherokees. — Jack- 
son paid every attention to the comfort of his soldiers, 
up to tl)e last moment, strictly fulfilHng his solemn 
pledge not to abandon one of them. Frequently he 
gave up his own horse to the sick, or exhausted .soldier, 
and trudged along on foot, cheering all by his example, 
and ever ready with a kind word, to encourage those 
who faltered. 

Deeply chagrined though he was, at the result of the 
expedition to Natchez, General Jackson was still anx- 
ious to take part in the active scenes of the war. The 
disasters on the northern frontier in ISI'2, and the fail- 
ure of the projected winter campaign under Harrison, 
in consequence of the incautious advance of General 
Winchester to Frenclitown, had produced a deep im- 
pression on his mind. His proud spirit smarted under 
the discredit of defeat ; and, on the eighth of April, 
when on his way home, lie wrote to the Secretary of 
War, informing him that he should be glad to execute 
any orders of the government in Canada, with his de- 



CESSION OF LOUISIANA. 213 

tachment, which conkl be auj^mented, if necessary. " 1 
have a few standards," said he, " wearing the Ameri- 
can eagle, that T should be happy to place upon the 
ramparts of INIalden." 

About the middle of I\Iay, the Tennessee volunteers 
Fcached home and were discharged. The Secretary of 
"War informed General Jackson that the order to dis- 
miss his force was desimied to reach him at Fort Mas- 
sac, near the mouth of the Cumberland ; it being sup- 
posed that he had not yet moved down the river. Though 
this explanation appeared inconsistent with the orders 
at the same time issued to General Wilkinson, its sin- 
cerity was not questioned by General Jackson. It was 
sulHcient for him that his conduct was sanctioned by 
the government, and that he was relieved from the pe- 
cuniary responsibilities he had incurred. 

Within a few months after his return from Natchez, 
General Jackson was again called from his retirement, 
to lead a large body of troops into the Indian country 
on the southern borders of Tennessee. 

By the treaty of San Ildefonso, concluded on the 
first day of October, 1800, Louisiana was ceded by the 
Spanish government to the French republic. The ter- 
ritorial rights thereby acquired, were transferred to the 
United States, by a treaty concluded at Paris, on the 
thirtieth of April, 1803. Spain was highly incensed 
iat the assignment of the territory, and threw every 
[possible obstacle in the way of its occupation by the 
authorities of the United States. For a long; time .she 
'refused absolutely, to yield up a large tract of country 
lying between the Perdido and Mississippi rivers, upon 
the pretence that it belonged to Florida. 



214 ANDREW JACKSON. 

During the war on the European continent, a com- 
munity of feeling and interest was established between 
Spain and England ; and it was only by the assistance 
and cooperation of British fleets and armies, that Fer- 
dinand VII was able finally to preserve his throne. 
When hostilities commenced between the United States 
and Great Britain, — though solemnly bound by the pro- 
visions of a treaty concluded v/ith the former, in 1795, 
to restrain the Indians on the frontiers of Florida, 
by force, from attacking American citizens, — Spain, 
through her officers, permitted British agents sent from 
Canada, to establish themselves at the posts belonging 
to, or occupied by her, and countenanced, or connived 
at, their efforts to stir up the savages to begin an exter- 
rainatino; warfare. 

The principal Indian nations in the southern part of the 
Union were the Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws, and Chick- 
asaws. The two last mentioned tribes, together about 
thirty-five thousand strong, resided on the Yazoo, Pearl, 
and Pascagoula rivers, in the Territory of Mississippi ; 
and after the occupation of Louisiana, and the march of 
General Jackson through their country, with his largo 
army, on his return from Natchez, they could not be 
induced to take up arms against the Americans. The 
Cherokees, also, who occupied the mountainous coun- 
try, where the two Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, and 
Alabama, — the last a part of jMississippi Territory at 
the time of which I am speaking, — adjoin, or approach 
each other, with the exception of a very small portion 
of the younger members of the tribe, remained on 
i'rientlly terms with their white neighbors. The Creeks, 
numbering near twenty-five thousand, inhabited the 



THE SOL'THERX INDIANS. 215 

fertile and beautiful Auloclicwan country ; their set- 
tlements extending from the Gulf of INIexico to the 
Tennessee river, and from the Chatahoochee to the 
Tonibigbee, in the centre of which was the famous 
Hickory Ground, a rich tract of land lying in tlie forks 
01 the Coosa and Tallapoosa, which its aboriginal occu- 
pants, from time immemorial, held peculiarly sacred. 
Besides these tribes, there was the Seminole band, an 
olT-shoot of the Creeks, who had their homes, in the 
swamps and hummocks on the borders of Georgia and 
Florida. 

The Creeks and Seminoles, from their situation, in 
the vicinity of St. Augustine, St. Marks, Pensacola, 
and Fort Conde, were rendered particularly liable to 
be influenced by the British agents at those posts. In 
the winter of 1811-12, Tecumseh visited the Creeks, 
and exhorted them earnestly to dig up the hatchet. 
After his departure, prophets arose among them, who 
practiced the same rites and incantations with the bro- 
ther of the Shawano Chief, and, like him, professed to 
have received important revelations from the Great 
Spirit.* The older and wiser Vv^arriors were exceed- 
ingly averse to war, but, through the influence and 
machinations of British and Spanish officers who at- 
tended their councils, they were overruled by the 
younger and more ambitious spirits of the tribe. 

Soon after war vras declared, the Seminoles com- 
menced their depredations ; but in the following winter, 
I a body of Georgia militia, with two hundred volun- 
teers from East Tennessee, followed them into Florida, 
burned several of their towns, and returned home again 
* See Memoir of Geaeral HarrUon. ante. 



216 ANDREW JACKSON. 

in the spring of 1813. Matters were not yet ripe for a 
general outbreak, althovigh it was confidently antici- 
pated, as English vessels were known to be sent from 
tiie Bahamas to Florida, laden with arms, clothing, and 
ammunition, for the hostile Indians. In January, 1813, 
President Madison requested autliority from Congress, 
to take possession of the territory claimed by Spain, 
lying west of the Perdido. After some delay, an act 
was passed, and on the fifteenth of April, General Wil- 
kinson appeared before Fort Conde, near Mobile, and 
demanded its surrender. The Spanish commandant 
made no resistance, and the American standard was for 
the first time planted in the disputed territory. Other 
prominent points in the vicinity of Mobile were also 
occupied by the American troops. 

Occasionnl outrages were committed during the sum- 
mer of 1813, and the white settlers residing in the 
neighborhood of the Creeks and Seminoles lived in a 
state of constant alarm and agitation. On the fifteenth 
of August, Governor Blount, of Tennessee, was di- 
rected to detail fifteen hundred of the militia of that 
state, and hold them in readiness for immediate ser- 
vice. These troops were not called out, however ; and 
as time wore on without the occurrence of any .serious 
calamity, the border inhabitants began to fancy them- 
selves almost secure from attack. They were soon 
aroused from their lethargy, by the glare of burning 
villages, and the rattling war-cry of the Indian warrior. 

On the thirtieth day of August, 1813, Fort Mims, 
about forty miles from Mobile, on the left bank of the 
Alabama river, and a short distance above its junction 
with the Tombigbee, was surprised by a party of Creeks, 



V/AR VmU Tire CRKEKS. 217 

s&vcn hundred strong, under their chief, "Weatherford ; 
the garrison, consisting of one hundred and fifty of the 
1st Mississippi volunteers, under Major Beasely, and 
twenty white families \yho had taken rqfuge in the fort, 
with their negroes, in all about three hundred and fifty 
persons, were cruelly massacred. But seventeen of 
the whites made their escape. The perpetration of 
tliis horrid tragedy excited tlie utmost consternation at 
the forts and stations on the Tombigbee, of which there 
were nearly twenty within a distance of seventy miles 
above Fort Stoddart. Most of the forts were aban- 
doned, and the affrighted fugitives fled down the river 
to Mobile, which was itself extremely insecure. ^, 

General Claiborne, and Governor Holmes of the 
Mississippi Territory, immediately called out a small 
militia force, — all that it was in their power to bring 
into the field, — for the protection of the Mobile coun- 
try. In Tennessee, the alarm was universal, and the 
whole population were aKOUsed. But little aid could 
be expected from the General Government, all whose 
means and energies v/ere employed in the prosecution 
of the northern campaign, and the defence of the At- 
lantic coast from the ravages of the more civilized, but 
not less brutal enemy. A public meeting of the citi- 
zens of Nashville was held on the eighteenth of Sep- 
tember, at which resolutions were passed, urgently 
recommending the adoption, by the State Ijegislature, 
of prompt measures for the invasion of the Creek 
country. In accordance therewith, an act was passed 
Oil the twenty-fifth instant, authorizing the governor 
to call out tbirty-five hundred men, in addition to the 
fifteen hundred already required by the General Goy-. 

10 



218 AlVDREW JACKSON. 

ernment, who were to be immediately put in service, 
and pledging the faith of the state to pay them, if 
Congress should refuse. A resolution was also adopted 
on the twenty-seventh instant, directing the governor to 
tender the services of the Tennessee troops to the United 
States. 

The public sentiment, with one accord, fixed upon 
Andrew Jackson as the leader of this force. He was 
still confined to his room, on account of the arm frac- 
tured in the affray with Colonel Benton, which has been 
mentioned ; but when his country called him to the 
field, he was ready to obey her behest. On the twenty- 
fourth of September, Governor Blount directed him to 
call out, vvithout delay, two thousand men of his divi- 
sion, to rendezvous at Fayetteville, — and to order Colo- 
nel Coffee into immediate service, with five hundred 
cavalry previously raised. The necessary instructions 
were issued, on the same day, to Colonel Coffee, v,'!io 
was further instructed, to incorporate with his regi- 
ment any companies of volunteer riflemen that might 
present themselves. He also ordered into service the 
volunteers who had accompanied him to Natchez, to- 
gether with one thousand militia from his division. 

On the twenty-fifth of September, General Jack- 
son directed a part of the cavalry to repair to Hunts- 
ville, by forced marches. On the twenty-sixth, Colonel 
Cofiee was ordered to move upon tlie same point and 
wait further orders, and on the twenty-eiglith, he was 
instructed to proceed to Fort St. Stephen's which was 
said to be threatened by the enemy. Tiie state of his 
health did not permit the general to appear at Fayette- 
ville on the fourth, of October, the day appointed for 



TROOPS IN THE FIELD. 219 

the rendezvous ; but he was represented on that oeca- 
sion, by his aid, Major Reid, through whom he deliv- 
ered to the assembled troops a most eloquent and 
sjiirited address. On the seventh instant he reached 
the place of rendezvous, with his arm in a sling, where 
he found a dispatch from Colonel Coffee, who had 
marched a short distance beyond Huntsville, with near 
thirteen hundred men, informing him that the Creeks 
had divided their forces,— one portion moving towards 
the Georgia line, and the other advancing vipon the 
frontiers of Tennes.see, — and that, in consequence of 
this, he had not proceeded to Fort St. Stephen's. 

It had been generally supposed that the next blow 
would be struck at Mobile — more particularly, because 
of the facilities which would have been afforded to the 
Indians, by its possession, of communicating with their 
British allies ; but the report of Colonel Coffee allayed 
all the fears that had been entertained in recfard to the 
safety of that post. Relieved on this point. General 
Jackson commenced his preparations for taking the 
field. Delay, however brief, was hardly admissible, as 
he desired to terminate the campaign by a few bold 
and decisive movements, but it was necessary, in order 
to furnish the volunteers and militia, who had rendez- 
voused at Fayetteville, with the requisite arms and 
supplies. 

The hostile Creeks, or Red Sticks, numbered only 
about four thousand warriors, and they were now sur- 
rounded by an American force large enough, had it 
been properly provided, and directed by a single com- 
mander, like General Jackson, to have driven them into 
the Gulf of Mexico, or exterminated them in a very 



230 ANDREW JACKSOIf. 

few weeks. On the wes^t of their settlements, there 
were six hundred Mississippi volunteers, under General 
Claiborne ; the 3rd regiment of regular infantry, six 
huzidred strong, under Colonel Russell; and two hun- 
dred militia, at Fort St. Stephen's. On the north, 
were the Tennessee volunteers and militia, five thou- 
sand in number, — twenty-five hundred from West Ten- 
nessee, with General Jackson in person, and twenty- 
five hundred from East Tennessee, under Generals 
Cocke and White, — all under the orders of General 
Jackson ; and in addition to these, there was a force 
of two hundred Mississippi volunteers, near Hunts- 
ville, under Colonel Perkins. On the east were 
twenty-five hundred Georgia militia, commanded by 
General Floyd. Besides the troops mentioned, there 
was a body of Cherokees and friendly Creeks, some- 
times with one party and sometimes with another, and 
varying, at ditrerent times, from one or two, to seven 
or eight hundred. 

Had they not been grossly deceived and deluded by 
their prophets, the Creeks could never have hoped to 
accomplish anything against this formidable array. 
Indeed, they seem to have been strangely infatuated 
throughout ; for, instead of concentrating their whole 
force in an attack on Mobile, or the Mississippi or 
Georgia troops, neither of whom were yet fully pre- 
pared for the field, they advanced with their main 
body, weakened by a detachment sent towards the 
frontiers of Georgia, against the column under Gen- 
eral Jackson, who was ready to meet them at any 
odds, and determined to defeat, when lie did meet 
them. It is not probable that the British agents who 



DESIGNS OF THE BRITISH. 221 

instigated the Creeks to hostilities, anticipated that the 
latter would achieve any certain success. They only 
supposed that the savages would hold the Americans 
at bay, until a British army could be brought to suc- 
cor them. The resistless energy and perseverance of 
General Jackson, defeated any such project. Long 
before England was able to dispatch a considerable 
force to the Gulf, he had fallen upon the Creeks like a 
thunderbolt, scattered their warriors, who escaped the 
deadly aim of his rifles, like chaff before the wind, 
spread terror and devastation through their settle- 
ments, and forced them, as suppliants, humbly to beg 
for peace. 

About one o'clock in the morning of the eleventh of 
October, an express from Colonel Coffee, — who had 
crossed the Tennessee river south of Huntsville, at 
Ditto's Landing, and posted his command on a high 
bluff on the opposite shore, — arrived at Fayetteville, 
with the information that the Red Sticks were rapidly 
approaching his position. Jackson instantly replied, 
that he woufd be on the march to reinforce him, in 
two hours. It had been sometime before understood, 
between General Jackson and General Cocke, that the 
latter would send supplies down the river, from East 
Tennessee, where provisions were abundant, to meet 
the other column at Ditto's Landing. Hoping, rather 
than believing, that he would be supplied with pro- 
visions, in- sufficient quantities, if he advanced into 
the enemy's country, Jackson ordered all his disposa- 
ble force under arms, and left Fayetteville early in the 
morning of the eleventh. 

Rumors of Indian massacres and outrages reached 



222 ANDREW JACKSON. 

the command at every stage of their progress. They 
scarcely halted during the day, and at eight o'clock in 
the evening were in Huntsville, thirty-two miles dis- 
tant. Here General Jackson ascertained that the re- 
port in regard to the advance of the Creeks was not 
well founded ; and lie therefore concluded to rest his 
men till the followinsr morninsr, when he resumed his 
march, and in the evening eft'ected a junction with the 
troops under Colonel Coffee. 

From the positive assurances contained in letters 
received from Generals Cocke and White, — the latter 
of whom had concentrated about eight hundred and 
fifty men, at Highwassee Garrison, in the Cherokee 
country, on the fourth of October, — General Jackson 
was led to believe that he should find ample stores of 
provisions when he reached the Tennessee river. On 
the thirteenth of October, he dispatched Colonel Coffee, 
with six hundred men picked from his regiment, against 
Blackwarriors' Town, on the Blackwarrior river, about 
one hundred miles south of Ditto's Landing. Day 
after day passed by, and still the supplies did not ar- 
rive. The time was profitably spent, under the cir- 
cumstances, in drilling the troops, but the delay was, 
nevertheless, intolerable. Repeated messages were re- 
ceived from Chenubby, Pathkiller, and other friendly 
chiefs, informing him that they and their families were 
liable to be cut off, at any moment, by the Red Sticks, 
who were collecting in force near the Ten Islands, on 
the Coosa River, and urging him to hasten to their as- 
sistance. He at length determined that he would not 
longer remain inactive. 

As his contemplated route to the Coosa lay, for some 



ADVANCE TO THOMPSON'S CKEEK. 223 

distanco, up the Tennessee river, he resolved to advance, 
lioping to meet the stores which he supposes! were de- 
scending the stream ; and so confident was he upon this 
point, that he sent forward expresses to stop them at 
Thompson's Creek. On the nineteentli of October, ho 
commenced his march for that point, with scarcely a 
week's rations on hand, having previously dismissed 
the former contractors for his army and supplied their 
places with others. 

He was obliged to cut a road for the passage of his 
wagon train through dense forests, and over almost 
impassable mountains ; but he only smiled at obstacles 
when he possessed the means to overcome them. On 
the twenty-second instant, he arrived at Thompson's 
Creek, but it was only to be again disa])pointed. No 
supplies were to be found, and nothing could be heard 
of any. Other generals would have given up in despair ; 
but it was not in his nature to falter. Though envi- 
roned by dilTicultics, which might well have appalled a 
braver spirit, he formed the stern resolution to breast 
them nobly and manfully. To retreat now, would be 
to abandon the friendly Creeks, of whose danger he was 
again reminded, by a message from Pathkiller, at Tur- 
key Town, to their fate, — and to leave the southern 
frontiers of Tennessee exposed to the ruthless ravages 
of the savage enemy. Though the hideous monster, 
Famine, stared him in the face at every step, he re- 
solved to advance to the Ten Islands, and then sweep 
down through the country where the hostiles, or Red 
Sticks, as they were called, in allusion to the emblems 
which they had adopted, were concentrating, to tlio 
forks of the Cocsa and Tallapoosa. 



224 ANDREW JACKSOX. 

He addressed earnest and importunate letters to the 
governors of Tennessee and Georgia, to Colonels Meigs 
and Mclvee, the Cherokee and Choctaw agents, to 
General Flourney, the commander of the seventh mili- 
tary district, to the friendly chiefs, and several private 
citizens of wealth and influence, urging them to leave 
no means untried to throw forward the necessary sup- 
plies for his army, and pledging himself, if properly 
furnished in this respect, to terminate the war in a very 
fevv^ weeks. While at Thompson's Creek, he received 
a letter from General White, who had increased his 
force at Highwassee to about thirteen hundred men, 
besides one or two hundred friendly Cherokees, inform- 
ing him that no flour could be spared at that post. He 
immediately dispatched expresses to Generals Cocke 
and White, apprising them of the condition of his troops 
in regard to provisions, and requiring them to join him 
as soon as possible in the Creek country. 

On the twenty-fourth of October, Colonel Coffee re- 
turned from his expedition, having destroyed Black- 
warriors' Town, and captured three hundred bushels 
of corn, though he had not seen an Indian. The pro- 
visions of his men were so nearly exhausted, that, 
during the last four days of their excursion, they were 
obliged to subsist on parched corn. In the evening of 
the twenty-fourth, the preparations of General Jackson 
for a forward movement were completed ; a depot was 
established at Thompson's Creek, called Fort Deposit, 
and means provided for forwarding such supjjlics as 
miglit arrive ; and. on the morning of the twenty-fifth, 
lie put his army in motion for the interior, marching, 
as was his invariable custom, in three columns, so ar- 



BATTLE OF TALLUSCHATCHEE. 225 

ranged that they could be instantly formed in order of 
battle, if attacked in front or in rear, or on either flank. 

In two days General Jackson reached Wills' Creek, 
a tributary of the Coosa, where he encamped till tiio 
morninir of tlie twenty-ninth, to collect corn from the 
neighboring Indians, — his army being entirely out of 
bread. On the twenty-eighth instant, Lieutenant 
Colonel Dyer was detached with two hundred cavalry, 
against the village of Littefutchee, which he attacked 
the following night ; the village was burned ; twenty- 
nine prisoners were taken ; and considerable corn, and 
a number of beeves, were collected from the vicinity. 
While at Wills' Creek, Jackson was again obliged to 
remove his contractors, and employ others. On the 
thirtieth instant, he reorganized his troops. General 
Hall was placed in command of the first brigade, con- 
sisting of the first and second regiments of volunteer 
infantry, under Colonels Bradley and Pillow; and 
General Roberts in command of the second brigade, 
consisting of the first and second militia regiments, 
under Colonels Wynne and M'Crory. General Coffee, 
promoted from colonel, was placed in command of the 
cavalry brigade, which consisted of the volunteer regi- 
ment. Colonel Alcorn, and the mounted rifles, Colonel 
Cannon. 

The march was then resumed for the Ten Islands. 
While General Jackson was cutting his way over the 
Coosa mountain, General Coflee was ordered to cross 
the river, at the fish-dams, with one thousand men of 
his brigade, to scour the country in the direction of the 
Ten Islands, and attack the Indian town of Talluschat- 
chee, about thirteen miles distant, in an easterly direc- 



226 ANDREW JACKSON. 

tion, where a large force of the enemy had collected. 
The orders issued to General Coffee were gallantly exe- 
cuted. On the morning of the third of November he 
approached the town ; the savages in vain attempted to 
oppose his march ; and they were driven rapidly back 
upon their buildings, in and about which a fierce and 
bloody contest took place, that terminated in their 
complete rout and overthrow. Both men and women 
fought with the utmost desperation. One hundred and 
eighty-six of the enemy, including one of their prophets, 
and a number of women and children, were found dead 
on the field of battle ; and there were eighty-four taken 
prisoners, all of whom were women and children. Gen- 
eral Coffee had live men killed and fourteen wounded. 
Having destroyed the town and buried his dead, he 
rejoined the main army, at the Ten Islands, in the eve- 
ning of the same day, with his wounded and prisoners. 
Harassed by constant care and anxiety, — exposed, 
at every turn, to vexatious delays and hindrances, that 
fretted and annoyed him, — General Jackson never lost 
that kindness and gentleness of spirit, which bloomed, 
bright and pure, amid the intenser passions that burned 
and blazed around it. Among the prisoners taken at 
Talluschatchee, was an infant boy found clinging to 
the breast of his dead mother. He was brought to camp 
with the others, and General Jackson endeavored to 
hire some of the captive women to take care of him. 
They refused, saying, " All his relations are dead ; kill 
him too!" — Jackson then caused him to be fed with 
sweetened water, and afterwards sent him to Huntsville, 
where he was nursed at his expense. After the close 
of the campaign, he took the little orphan, who was 



KI.\D.\ESS TO THE ORPHAN. 227 

named Lincoj'-er, home with liim to the Hermitage, 
where he was reared and educated with parental care 
and kindness. At a proper age, he was apprenticed to 
a saddler in Nashville ; but he never lost his Indian 
tastes. His healtli began to fail before he reached the 
age of manhood, and he was removed to the Hermitage. 
He sunk rapidly into a consumption, and soon died, 
sincerely mourned and lamented by the general and iiis 
wife, who had watched over his sick bed with untiring 
assiduity. 

At the Ten Islands, General Jackson established a 
post, called Fort Strother, on the right bank of the 
Coosa, opposite the mouth of Talluschatchee creek. 
The prisoners brought in by General Coflee were forth- 
with sent to Huntsville. No supplies had yet arrived ; 
the armv could not be furnished with regular rations ; 
and it was hardly known, one day, what they were to 
subsist on the next. Once more the commanding gen- 
eral appealed to the contractors, by every consideration 
of humanity and patriotism, to forward the provisions 
which could alone save his troops from starvation. He 
likewise again wrote to General White, w'ho had ar- 
rived at Turkey Town, twenty-five miles above Fort 
Strother, to join him immediately. His dispatch was 
written on the seventh of November, and, late in the 
evening, before it was closed, a runner came in from 
Lashly's fort, at Talladega, about thirty miles south 
of Fort Strother, and a short distance east of the Coosa, 
with the intelligence that a large body of Red Sticks 
had encamped near that place, which was occupied by 
friendly Indians, and were preparing to destroy it and 
the inmates. General Jackson could not hesitate to 



22S ANDREW JACKSOIT. 

grant the desired succor. He determined to march 
fortlnvith ; the urgent circumstances which induced 
him to advance, were mentioned in the dispat(;h to 
General White ; and the latter Avas entreated to lose 
no time in reaching Fort Strother, to protect his depot 
and cover his rear. 

Marching orders were issued in a few moments after 
the arrival of the runner, and at midnight General 
Jackson was on the march for Talladega, with his 
whole disposable force, consisting of twelve hundred 
infantry, and eight hundred cavalry and mounted rifles. 
His sick, wounded, and baggage, were left at Fort 
Strothcr. Crossing the Coosa in the night, he pressed 
forward vrith such celerity — officers and men vicing 
with each other in zeal — that, on the evening of the 
eighth instant, he encamped within six miles of the 
fort at Talladega, which was occupied by one hundred 
and sixty friendly warriors, with their women and 
children. About midnight the chief Chenubby arrived 
from Turkey Town, with a letter from General White, 
informing General Jackson that he had received an 
order froin his division commander, General Cocke, to 
join him at Chattooga, higher up the Coosa, and that 
he could not, therefore, advance to Fort Strothcr. 

Jaclcson's cup of disappointment was almost full. 
Neither General Cocke, nor General White, wanted 
in patriotism ; but they seem, more particularly the 
former, to have been impressed with the belief, that by 
remaining aloof from General Jackson, they would se- 
cure a larger share of the honors of the campaign. It 
seems almost painful to contemplate the struggles of 
the proud and ambitious spirit constantly thwarted by 



BATTLE or TALLADEGA. 229 

their unwise movements. Had they joined him at once, 
the war would have been brought to a close in a few 
weeks; but they preferred to linger behind, in safety 
and security, eating up the provisions' better deserved 
by those who were enduring the severest fatigues and 
privations ; and when they recovered from their inac- 
tivity, and advanced to strike a blow, it proved to be 
the only unfortunate one of the whole campaign. 
. The dispatch from General White made no change, 
however, in the determination of General Jackson. 
He resolved to dispose of the enemy in his front, ,and 
then fall back, with all possible speed, to Fort Strother, 
before the enemy would have time to profit by its de- 
fenceless condition. The prospect before his troops was 
disheartening in the extreme ; if they conquered, there 
would be no food to refresh or rei'nvigorate them ; yet 
his example inspired them with confidence, and they 
obeyed his commands without hesitation or reluctance. 
Long before daylight on the morning of the ninth of 
November, the army was again in motion. Silently 
threading their way through the luxuriant forests, 
winding over the hills, and crossing the rich intervals, 
that separated them from the enemy, they approached 
their position. Within a mile, they were halted, and 
formed in order of battle. The infantry brigades were 
placed in the centre, — General Hall's on the right, and 
General Roberts' on the left. They were flanked, on 
the right, by Colonel Alcorn's volunteer cavalry, and, 
on the left, by the mounted rifles of Col(jnel Cannon. 
An advanced corps of riflemen, spies, and artillery, 
was formed under Colonel Carroll, the inspector gen- 



230 



ANDREW JACKSON. 



eral, and a strong reserve of two hundred and fifty 
mounted men, under Lieutenant Colonel Dyer. 

At eight o'clock the attack was ordered ; and the 
whole column moved rapidly forward, all full of ani- 
mation and enthusiasm. Colonel Carroll preceded the 
main body, with the advance, having received orders 
to rouse the enemy from the thicket on the banks of a 
small rivulet, in which they had concealed themselves, 
and then to retire towards the centre. The sharp 
quick report of his rifles, and the hideous yells and 
screams, soon apprised the remainder of the column 
that the savages had been started from their cover. 
Meantime, the infantry regiments, which had pre- 
viously advanced by heads of companies, had displayed, 
in accordance with tiie orders of General Jack.son, 
and tlie cavalrv were extendinii^ themselves, to the 
right and left, so as to encircle the enemy. The orders 
issued by the commanding general required the cavalry 
to keep up their connection with the flanks of the in- 
fantry. This was neglected on the right, and the plan 
of attack, which was most skilfully formed, was par- 
tially defeated by this untoward circumstance. Col- 
onel Bradley, the otiicer commanding the infantry reg- 
iment on the right, also halted his men on a rising 
ground, before he came in contact with the enemy, 
and the gap was thereby considerably widened. 

When the fronts of the cavalry columns rnet on the 
further side of the enemy, they faced inwardly, and a 
general rush was made towards the centre. The In- 
dians did not appear inclined to fly, at first, but made 
a bold onset upon the right wing of General Roberts' 
brigade. Three of the companies, after delivering their 



DEFEAT OF THE ENEMY. 231 

fire, began to stagger, and finally fell back in the rear. 
Colonel Bradley was then ordered to advance with his 
regiment, and fdl up the vacancy. This he declhied 
doing ; and General Jackson, much against his will, 
as he designed the reserve to pursue the enemy if they 
attempted to escape, was forced to direct Lieutenant 
Colonel Dyer to dismount his men, and engage them. 
Observing this movement, the retiring militia rallied 
and did good service. 

The action was not of long continuance. The sav- 

CD 

ages could not withstand the destructive fire poured 
in upon them from every side, and in fifteen minutes 
they commenced flying hither and thither, within the 
circle, seeking some avenue of escape. Whichsoever 
way they turned, they encountered the rifle and the bay- 
onet. At length, they discovered the opening between 
Colonel Alcorn's regiment of cavalry, on tiie right, and 
the volunteers of Colonel Bradley. Through this num- 
bers of them dashed, hotly pursed by both cavalry and 
infantry, who followed them for nearly three miles, 
strewing the ground throughout the whole distance 
with tlieir dead bodies. The Indian force numbered 
one thousand and eighty warriors, of whom two hun- 
dred and ninety-nine were found killed on the field of 
battle, and many more must have perished in the 
woods. The Americans lost but fifteen killed, and 
eighty-five wounded, some of the latter mortally. 

The occupants of the fort thus timely relieved, crowded 
around General Jackson and his brave troops, and 
poured forth their tiianks in eloquent and impressive 
terms. There were only one hundred and sixty war- 
riors, with their women and children, and the arrival 



232 ANDREW JACKSON. 

of the Tennesseans was most opportune, as the Red 
Sticks were to have assaulted the fort in a few hours. 
They had been entirely cut off from their supply of 
water, and had suiiered considerably for want of it. 
Their stock of provisions was also limited ; but on dis- 
covering the condition of Jackson's troops, who had left 
Fort Strother with but little over one day's rations, 
they cheerfully furnished them all they had to spare, 
which scarcely amounted to a single meal. 

General Jackson complimented his troops, in tho 
highest terms, for their gallantry in this action. All 
the officers, with the exception of Colonel Bradley, who 
was placed under arrest, but afterwards released, were 
mentioned in his dispatches in terms of marked ap- 
probation. 

An instant retreat to Fort Strother was now neces- 
sary. The horses were suffering for the want of forage, 
and the men were half-famished, when they turned 
their backs on the field of victory, and commenced their 
retrograde march. Jackson was with the van of the 
army, and on the v\'ay discovered a quantity of acorns 
lying on the ground. T3ismounting from his horse, he 
threw tlie bridle over his arm, and, having gathered a 
few of tlie nuts, sat down on the roots of a tree to eat 
them. He was thus engaged in satisfying his hunger, 
when a soldier approached him, and demanded some- 
thing to eat. " I never turn away the hungry," said 
the general, " while I have anything to give them." 
He then offered the soldier a few acorns, adding, " I 
will most cheerfully divide with you such food as I 
have." Mortified and surprised, tho man shrunk back 



DESTITUTION OF THE TROOPS. 233 

among his companions, who thereafter repressed every 
disposition to murmur or complain. 

The army reached Fort Strother on the evening of 
the eleventh of November, but it was only to be once 
more disappointed. No provisions, except the limited 
quantities forwarded by the contractors, had yet ar- 
rived ; and the private stores of the general had been 
ahnost exhausted, in order to supply the wants of the 
sick and wounded. Still he assumed a cheerful and 
confident tone, though sad enough at heart, and resort- 
ing to the slaughter-pens, provided himself with tripes, 
with which he made what he termed a comfortable re- 
past. His example was imitated by the soldiers, Avho 
seemed inclined willingly to endure the hardships of the 
campaign. 

But matters could not long continue in this situation. 
The battles of Talluschatchee and Talladega had satis- 
ficd, to a considerable degree, the desire for adventure 
which had previously animated the troops in the midst 
of the most embarrassing difficulties, and they soon be- 
gan to pine for the comforts of home. Starvation was 
far more terrible to them than " an army with banners." 
They were brave, — this could not be doubted, — and 
they would have gladly followed their general into the 
very heart of the Creek country, if they could only 
have been assured that a reasonable supply of food 
M'ould be provided ; of the two enemies whom they met 
in the wilderness, they feared the savage least ; and 
was it not asking too much that they should encounter 
both ? 

Disaffection gradually gained ground, and, in a few 
days, the whole army was on the verge of mutiny. 



234 ANDREW JACKSON. 

The militia remments were the first to make known 
their determination to leave the camp, and return to 
Tennessee. Apprised of their intention, General Jack- 
son ordered the volunteer brigade under arras, and 
when the militia attempted to move otT, the former 
were directed to fire upon them unless they returned 
to their duty. This had the desired effect. The over- 
awed militia retired to their tents, but, on the follow- 
ing morning, they were themselves paraded, in a simi- 
lar manner, to prevent the volunteers from deserting 
their colors. This arraying of one species of force 
against another was a bold and happy conception of 
Jackson's ; but it would not bear repetition. No one 
could be better aware than himself, that the men had 
reasonable cause for complaint, even though he insisted 
on a rigid compliance with his orders to remain at Fort 
Strother. The horses were suffering so much, however, 
for the want of forage, that the mounted men received 
permission to go back to Huntsville, upon their pledge 
to return promptly when required to do so. 

Having been |X)sitively assured by the new contrac- 
tor. Colonel Pope, in reply to his earnest and pathetic 
appeals, that supplies would soon reach his camp. Gen- 
eral Jackson made a most eloquent and animated ha- 
rangue to his troops on the fourteenth of November, 
exhorting them, by every consideration and argument 
which should induence brave and patriotic citizens, not 
to abandon the service, and leave the frontier settle- 
ments exposed to the desolating incursions of the In- 
dians. He also promised them, that if a supply of pro- 
visions did not arrive within two days, he would him- 
self lead them back where there was plenty. The. 



SUPPRESSION OF THE MUTINY. 



^35 



militia consented to remain ; but tlie volunteer regi- 
ments, forgetful of the heavy debt of gratitude which 
they owed to their commander, for his refusal to desert 
them the previous winter, at Natchez, when they had 
been abandoned by their government, determined to 
march forthwith to the settlements. Discovering that 
it was useless longer to attempt compulsory measures, 
General Jackson issued the necessary orders to Gen- 
eral Hall, to conduct his brigade to Fort Deposit. 
Before the march was commenced, the second regiment 
wi.sely reconsidered their determination, and concluded 
to stay with the general ; whereupon the first regiment 
moved oif alone. 

The specified time elapsed, and still no provisions 
had arrived. On the sixteenth. General Jackson com- 
menced his preparations for the abandonment of Fort 
Strother ; but, on reflecting how much this movement 
would re'inspirit the savages, he declared that he would 
not leave the post, if only two men would remain with 
him. Captain Gordon, of the spies, instantly volun- 
teered to be one of his companions, and through liis 
exertions, and those of some of the members of the 
general staff, one hundred and nine men were found 
who agreed to stay. 

Feeling confident, however, that supplies were close 
at hand, General Jackson marched with the militia, 
apprising them, in advance, that they would be ordered 
back if his expectations should be realized. Within 
ten or twelve miles of the fort, they met one hundred 
and fifty beeves. The column at once halted ; the cat- 
tle were knocked down, and eagerly cooked and eaten 
by the half-starved troops. But when the order to 



236 ANDREW JACKSON. 

return was issued, none obeyed it. One company, in- 
deed, had resumed the march, before the general dis- 
covered the mutinous disposition which jirevailed 
among the troops. He immediately dashed ahead of 
the men who were moving ofT, and with General Cof- 
fee, a part of the staff, and a few soldiers, formed a 
line across the road, and declared that he would fire 
on them if they endeavored to pass. Well knowing 
that he was not the man to forfeit his word, they fell 
back to the main body, who were soon discovered to be 
likewise infected with the spirit of mutiny. Argu- 
ments and entreaties proved of no avail, — the troops 
all formed, and were on the point of continuing their 
march to Fort Deposit. As a last resort, the general 
snatched a musket, threw it across the neck ot his 
horse, and placing himself in front of the column, de- 
clared that he would shoot down the first man who 
moved a single step in advance. 

The piece which General Jackson had seized was 
too much out of order to be fired, and his arm was so 
weak that he could not aim it with any precision ; but 
the men before him knew nothing of this, or, if they 
did, thought not of it. They only saw his flashing 
eye, and his determined look. General Coffee and 
some of the staff took their places in silence beside him. 
Two faithful companies also formed in his rear. All 
were ready to fire when he gave the signal. For sev- 
eral moments not a word was uttered. At length the 
power of numbers quailed before the iron will, the 
moral greatness of that one man. The mutineers sig- 
nified their willinsrness to return, and in a short time 

CD ' 

tliey were retracing their steps to Fort Strother. 



DESTRUCTIOX OF THE IIILLABEE TOUTIS, 237 

While General Jackson Avas engaged in quelling 
the disturbances in his camp, the East Tennesseans, 
under (jrcneral White, were proceeding against the 
Ilillabee towns, the warriors from which iiad been 
present at the battle of Talladega. Intimidated by the 
result of this action, they had applied to General Jack- 
son, on the thirteenth of November, for terms of peace. 
On the seventeenth he replied, making known to them 
the conditions upon which their request would be 
granted. On the same night. General White, who had 
been detached for this service by General Cocke, on 
the eleventh of November, with all his cavalry and 
mounted infantry, approached the principal Hillabce 
village, having previously destroyed Little Oakfuskie, 
Genalga, and Netta Chaptoa. At daylight the town 
was surprised, sixty warriors were Ivilled, and two hun- 
dred and fifty taken prisoners, without the loss of a 
drop of blood on the part of General White's command. 

This unfortunate movement — unfortunate, inasmuch 
as the blow fell with crushing weight upon a people 
already subdued, and anxious to make peace on any 
terms — confirmed General Cocke in the oninion which 
he had previously formed and communicated to General 
Jackson on the fourteenth of November, that it was far 
better to unite his forces with those of the latter, and 
act in concert with him, than, by remaining separate, 
to paralyze his efforts, and defeat his plans. Thereafter 
he made no attempt to oj^erate independently of Gen- 
eral Jackson, and on the twelfth of December joined 
him at Fort Strother, with fourteen hundred and fifty 

Meanwhile the Georgia militia, under General Floyd, 



238 ANDREW JACKSON. 

though, like the Tennessee troops, much embarrassed 
by the want of supplies, had been advancing from the 
frontier of that state into the Creek country. Early in 
the morning of the twenty-ninth of November, they 
surprised the Indian town of Antossee, situated on the 
left bank of the Tallapoosa, about twenty miles above 
its junction with the Coosa, and which the savages had 
been taught by their prophets to consider holy ground. 
The force under General Floyd consisted of nine hun- 
dred and fifty Georgians, and between three and four 
hundred friendly Indians. Antossee, and another town 
about five hundred yards lower down, were occupied by 
large parties of the enemy. Both were attacked at the 
same moment ; the houses were set on fire ; and a fu- 
rious contest took place ami<l the surrounding flames. 
The Indians were ultimately routed and dispersed, with 
the loss of two hundred killed and wounded. General 
Floyd was himself severely wounded ; and there were 
eleven of his men killed, and fifty-four woimded. As 
the principal Creek towns were within a short distance 
of Autossee, he completed the work of destruction, and 
immediately retired to the Chatahoochee, which he 
reached without molestation. On the ninth of Decem- 
ber, another detachment of Georgia militia, under 
General Adams, consisting of five hundred and thirty 
men. marched on a second expedition against the towns 
on the Tallapoosa. They were unable to bring the 
enemy to action, but destroyed two of their villages, 
and then returned to camp. 

While these operations were going on, east and north 
of the Creeks, the regulars and militia on the west, 
though cut off from all communication \yith the other 



ECCANAIlACA DESTROV£D. 239 

columns, by the trackless forests which separated them, 
were not inactive. On the thirteenth of December, 
General Claiborne moved up the Alabama river, from 
Fort Stoddart, with a detachment, in order to destroy 
the towns above the mouth of the Cahawba. On the 
twenty-third instant he attacked Eccanahaca, or Holy 
Ground, a new town erected since the commencement 
of the war, in the midst of tangled thickets, and almost 
impenetrable swamps and morasses. This village was 
the general depot of the Indians in this section, and 
contained large quantities of property and stores of pro- 
visions. It consisted of about two hundred houses, and 
was occupied by a considerable body of the enemy, 
luider the half-breed chief, Weatherford. General 
Claiborne advanced upon the town, with his force 
divided into three columns. The Indians were quickly 
driven out, leaving thirty dead on the ground. Hav- 
ing no facilities for removing the property or provisions, 
the general ordered them to bo consumed with the 
town. He also destroyed another village, containing 
t sixty houses, eight miles higher up the river. 
; Among the slain at Eccanahaca were three Shawnee 
i warriors, who had probably joined the hostile Creeks 
' after the terrible defeat of their tribe on the banlcs of 
the Thames, in October previous ; and among the tro- 
phies of the expedition, was a letter to Weatherford, 
from Manriquez, the Spanish governor of Florida, dated 
at Pensacola, the twenty-ninth of September, affording 
ample and conclusive evidence of his connivance with 
the Red Sticks.* 

* r\Ianriqucz stated in hh letter, that he haJ requested the Captain 
|6eneral, at Havana, to forward him a supply of anas and ammunition, 



240 ANDREW JACKSOjr. 

The troops called out under the authority of the J 
Legislature of Tennessee, were accepted by the Gen- 
eral Government, and on the seventh of November, 
General Pinckney, previously in charge of the sixth 
military district, was ordered to assume command of 
the seventh. His plan of conducting the campaign 
contemplated the junction of the various corps opera- 
ting in the Creek country, at the conHuence of the 
Coosa and Tallapoosa; and instructions were, issued 
by him to the different commanders, requiring them to 
take possession of the country as they advanced, so as, 
at all times, to keep open their communication in the 
rear. 

After allaying the mutiny in his camp, in November, 
General Jackson visited Fqrt Deposit and Ditto's Land- 
ing, to make arrangements for supplying his army, pre- 
paratory to another forward movement which he had 
in contemplation. Requisitions were issued for fur- 
nishing a suitable number of rations at Fort Strother, 
Talladega, and the junction of the Coosa and Talla- 
j)oosa, together with wagons and ])ack-horses for their 
transportation. He Ihen returned to Fort Stroth.^r 
with the first regiment of volunteers. Shortly after 
his return a new cause of disturbance arose. The 
volunteers had originally engaged to serve for twelve; 
months, and they claimed that their term of service, 
would expire on the tenth of December. General; 
Jackson, however, contended that the period which 
elapsed between the time of their dismissal, after their,) 

for distribution among the Indians. Tiiis was one of the circumstanc6a 
vvliich justified the attack on Pcnsacola, by General Jackson, in the fall 



of 1811, 



i^.. Cj .j. 



ANOTHER MUTINY. 241 

return from Natchez, and that of their subsequent rc- 
muster, at Fayetteville, must be deducted. Each 
party insisted on its particular view of the case ; and 
in the evening of the ninth of December, General Jack- 
son was informed by General Hall, that his brigade 
were preparing to move off, with, or without permis- 
sion, on the following mornina:. 

General Jackson had become familiar M'ith scenes 
of this character, and he immediately issued an order, 
stating that an actual mutiny existed in the camp, and 
commanding all officers and soldiers to unite in putting 
it down. He further directed the volunteer brisrade to 
parade on the west side of the fort ; the company of 
artillerists were ordered to take post, with one piece in 
front, and one in rear, of their line ; and the militia, 
under Colonel Wynne, were instructed to occupy the 
eminences in advance. These dispositions being made, 
the general rode in front of the volunteers, and ad- 
dressed each company separately, in eloquent and ani- 
mated terms, informing them that he had submitted 
the question in dispute to the governor, and that, until 
his decision was known, or reinforcements joined him, 
he could not dispense Vv'itli their services. He appealed 
to every noble and worthy motive to induce them to 
remain ; but declared, that he should do his duty, re- 
gardless of consequences; and that they could not 
leave him, without passing over his dead body. " Now," 
said he, in conclusion, " argument is at an end ; and 
you must choose, and that at once, whether you will 
go or stay !" 

Not a word was uttered in reply, by the volunteers. 
He then demanded a prompt answer. Still there was 

11 



242 ANDREW JACKSON. 

no response. He now ordered the artillerists to prepare 
their matches. Ere the order was obeyed, the obsti- 
nacy of the men gave way before his unyielding firm- 
ness. " Let us return," was whispered from one to 
another, with trembling lips ; and the officers soon 
came forward, and pledged themselves and their men, 
to remain until the general should hear from the gov- 
ernor, or the expected reinforcements arrive. 

On the twelfth of December, General Cocke reached 
the camp, from Fort Armstrong, with the East Ten- 
nesseans. General Jackson then issued an address to 
the volunteer brigade, ofTering to permit tliose who de- 
sired to leave him, to return at once to Nashville, and 
those who chose to remain, to organize themselves into 
a separate corps, with officers of their own selection. 
But one man in the \vhole brigade. Captain William- 
son, consented to stay ; the remainder w^ere marched 
back to Nashville, by General Hall, and soon after 
discharged from the service. 

The regiment of volunteer cavalry belonging to Gen- 
eral Coffee's brigade, claimed the same indulgence with 
the volunteer infantry, and the mounted rifles insisted 
that they v/ere only bound for a three months' tour of 
duty. About one-half the brigade abandoned the ser- 
vice, at Huntsville, and the other half returned to Fort 
Deposit, but they also subsequently deserted their com- 
mander, — General Coffee exerting himself, in vain, to 
induce them to remain, — and returned home. Tliese 
defections, and tlie expiration of the terms of service 
of a portion of General Cocke's division, reduced the 
force under General Jackson, at Fort Strothcr, to six 
hundred militia, two companies of spies, under Cap- 



LETTER TO GOVERNOR BLOUNT. 243 

tains Gordon and Russell, one of artillery, under Captain 
Deadrick, and a fow volunteers from the various corps, 
wlio had been, " faithful among the faitidess found." 
The militia demanded their discharge at the expiration 
of three months, although it had been supposed they 
were enlisted for six, and it was not thought advisable 
to compel them to remain. 

All these difficulties in keeping tlie troops in the 
field arose from the want of sufficient supplies. Had 
General Jackson been properly supported in this re- 
spect, it is probable there would not have been a sin- 
gle case of defection, and the first of January, 1814, 
would have witnessed the complete subjection of the 
Creeks. Still he was determined to prosecute the 
campaign, as soon as he should be in a condition to 
move forward. After the return of the militia, he was 
left with only about one hundred men, and was, in 
consequence, obliged to employ the friendly Cherokees 
in garrisoning Fort Armstrong and protecting the 
stores at Camp Ross. Generals Cocke and Roberts, 
Colonel Carroll, and Majt)r Searcy, the aid of the com- 
manding general, were at this time absent in Tennes- 
see, exerting themselves to raise additional troops. 

On being informed of the situation of General Jack- 
son, Governor Blount advised him to fall back from his 
advanced posts, and content himself with defending 
the frontiers of the state, until he was placed in suffi- 
cient force to carry on the war. On the twenty-ninth 
of December, 1813, the general unburthened his whole 
soul to the governor, 

" In thoughts that breathe, and words that burn." 

" What !" said he, in his letter, " retrograde under 



244 ANDREW JACKSON. 

such circnmstancps ! I will perish first. "What ! a 
governor of a ]iatriotic state, whose citizens pressed for 
war, w!]o bawled for permission to exterminate the 
Creeks, to poiise or hesitate at such a crisis as this ? 
Such conduct cannot be justified, cannot be excused. 
Hear the voice of a friend : If you compel me to retro- 
grade, the awful responsibility must and will be as- 
cribed to you. * * * I shall do my duty. I will re- 
tain the post, or die in the struggle, unless ordered to 
retreat by my commanding general !" 

The earnest appeals of General Jackson, whose in- 
trepidity of sj>irit and resoluteness of purpose appeared 
only the more conspicious, when fortune smiled the 
most unkindly on him, were not without effect. On 
the thirteenth of January, 1814, he was joined at Fort 
Strother, by two regiments of mounted men, eight 
liundred and fifty strong, under Colonels Perkins and 
Higgins, who had volunteered for sixty days. Previous 
to this time, ho had ascertained that the hostile Indians 
from several towns on the Tallapoosa, had concentrated 
in a bend of the river, thirty-five miles south-east of 
Talladega, near the mouth of the Emuckfaw Creek, 
and were either preparing to attack Fort Armstrong, 
or the Georgia troops. 

The volunteer cavalry having been enlisted for so 
short a period, it was necessary to act speetlily if he 
desired to avail himself of their services. On the day 
of their arrival at Fort Strother, he issued orders di- 
recting them to hold themselves in readiness for the 
inarch, and, on the fifteenth and sixteenth of Janviary, 
crossed the Coosa with iiis whole force, numbering 
seven hundred and sixty-seven men, though the official 



BATTLE OF EMUCKFAW. 245 

reports, wliich were not corrected lest the army should 
be intimidated by the knowledge of its weakness, 
showed a total of nine hundred and thirty. 

At Talladega, General Jackson was joined by two 
hundred friendly Creeks and Cherokees. The march 
was continued without intermission, and on the night of 
the twentieth instant, he encamped at Enotochopco, one 
of the Hillabee villages, within twelve miles of Emuck- 
faw. In the morning of the twenty-first, the army 
proceeded direct towards the bend of the river whore 
the enemy were said to be fortified. About the middle 
of the afternoon, the spies discovered two Indians, who 
were pursued, but made their escape. Advancing a 
short distance further, they came upon the main trail 
of the savaijes. The srcneral then determined to en- 
camp and reconnoitre the surrounding country, A 
proper position having been selected, the army en- 
camped in a hollow square. Pickets and spies were 
thrown out on every side ; the sentinels were doubled ; 
fires were built in a circle around the encampment ; 
and every precaution taken to guard against a surprise. 

Tliough General Jackson knew it not, as his spies 
could obtain but little information, he was in the im- 
mediate vicinity of the three principal, and most for- 
midable, bands of the Red Sticks. Girded by the belt of 
watch-fires which their vigilant and sagacious com- 
mander directed to be formed, in order to prevent the 
approach of an enemy undiscovered, his troops reposed 
in security. All remained quiet till ten o'clock in the 
evenin2f, when three of the savages were descried steal- 
ing cautiously towards one of the pickets. They were 
instantly fired on, an;l one of them was shot down. 



246 ANDREW JACKSON. 

About an hour later, the spies came in, and reported 
that there was a large Indian encampment three miles 
distant, and that its occupants were whooping and dan- 
cing, as if preparing to go ou^fc on the war-path. The 
general was further informed by one of the spies, an 
intelligent Indian, that the enemy were sending away 
their women and children — a sure indication that they 
intended to decamp, or attack him, before morning. 
Orders were now given for the men to be prepared for 
action, at any moment. 

IMomcnts and hours passed by in anxious suspense. 
From time to time the orders enjoining strict caution 
and vigilance were repeated. The darkest hour of the 
morning — the time usually selected by the Indians for 
their attacks — ajiproached ; and when everything was 
the most quiet and undisturbed, all at once there rose 
a loud pealing yell on the left of the encampment, and 
with it came a hurtling volley of rifle-balls. A deafen- 
ing responsive shout went up, within that fiery circle, 
like the wild pibroch of some Gaelic clan, rousing the 
martial spirit of all who heard it. The enemy kept 
up a rapid and unintermitting fire ; but they could not 
approach near enough to effect any execution, without 
entering the line of light which the timely precaution 
of Jackson had thrown around his men ; and whenever 
a single swart form, or painted visage, was disclosed, 
the American bullet sped away on its sure errand of 
death. 

When the alarm was first given. General Coffee, 
Colonel Carroll, and Colonel Sitler, the adjutant gen- 
eral, — who, with a number of other officers previously 
belonging to diflerent detachments, had remained with 



THE EiXEiMV REPULSED. 247 

the commander to whom they were devotedly attached, 
and formed themselves into a corps, without jjrivates, — 
mounted their horses and rode to the left. Their pres- 
ence inspirited and encouraged the troops, and the sav- 
ages were held firmly at bay till the dawning light 
enabled objects to be distinguished with precision. A 
company of infantry was then ordered to that flank, 
and thus strengthened, General Coflee, supported by 
Colonels Higgins and Carroll, led the whole line to the 
charge. The red warriors were driven from their cov- 

CD 

erts at the point of the bayonet, and pursued for more 
than two miles ; the friendly Indians joining in the 
chase, and marking their pathway with the blood of 
the slain. 

The enemy having been effectually repulsed, Gen- 
eral Coffee was ordered to advance to the Indian en- 
campment, with four hundred men and all the friendly 
warriors, and destroy it. On approaching it, he found 
that it was too strongly fortified to be carried by as- 
sault, and therefore returned to bring up the company 
of artillerv. Before he again set out, his services were 
required at the camp. Within half an hour after hi? 
return, a body of savages were observed on the right, 
who opened a brisk fire on a party searching for tha 
Indian shot by the picket on the previous night. Gen- 
eral Coffee solicited the honor of attacking them. Ho 
was directed to take two hundred men with him, but 
through some mistake, he was followed by only fifty- 
four men, all of whom belonged to the company of vol- 
unteer officers which he commanded. With this small 
force, he fell with such fury on the left flank of the as- 



248 ANDREW JACKSO.f. 

sailants, that they were forced to take shelter in a 
thicket on the bank of a small creek. 

In the meantime, as had been anticipated by Gen- 
eral Jackson, who supposed the demonstrartion on the 
right to be a mere ruse de guerre, the main body of 
the enemy came rushing like demons, with the most 
hideous and discordant yells, on the left of the Ameri- 
can encampment. lie instantly repaired thither in 
person. His men always knew how to fight under his 
eyes, and they stood their ground with veteran intre- 
pidity and firmness. A few well-directed and effective 
volleys were delivered, and resort was tlien had to the 
bayonet ; the men advancing to the charge under the 
ortlers of Colonel Carroll. Once more the enemy fled 
with precipitation, and were hotly pursued some dis- 
tance from the camp. 

The savages were now completely repulsed on the 
left, and Greneral Coffee and his little band, who had 
been forced back into the open wood where the battle 
commenced, were reinforced by one hundred friendly 
warriors. General ColTee, though severely wounded 
in the fierce conflict, which had deprived him of sev- 
eral of his best officers, including his aid, Major Donel- 
son, placed himself at the head of the united force, and 
charged home upon the assailants. They could no lun- 
ger make head against him, but retreated in confusion. 
The pursuit was continued for about three miles, in 
which forty-five of the enemy were killed.- 

Victorious as he was, General Jackson was still in 
a precarious position. His men had but fov/ rations 
left, and the horses had not had corn or cane, for two 
days. The main object of the expedition — a diversion 



BATTLE OF KNOTOCHOPCO. 249 

in favor of the Georgia troops — had been accomplished ; 
yet his small force was seriously crippled, and it was 
to be feared, if he remained at E muck fa w, that the 
Red Sticks would rally in greater nimibers, and attack 
him once more, under all his disadvantages. He there- 
fore decided to fall back to Fort Strother as soon as 
practicable. The remainder of the day was spent in 
burying the dead, in taking care of the wounded and 
preparing litters for their transportation, and in fortify- 
ing the camp. The mihtia sentinels were repeatedly 
alarmed during the night, probably by their own fan- 
cies, as no enemy was discovered ; and on the morning 
of the twenty-third, without having been again molest- 
ed, the army commenced the return march. 

Not a solitary Indian was seen through the day, ex- 
cept those attached to the command. They defiled, 
without interruption, through a hurricane, covered with 
the huge bolls of prostrate oaks and pines, with strag- 
gling branches of trees flung in every direction, and 
closely-matted weeds and brambles, in which there 
were numerous hiding-places that might have afforded 
shelter to an enemy ; and just before sunset, they ar- 
rived at Enotochopco, where they halted for the night, 
selecting a strong position, which they fortified, within 
a quarter of a mile of the creek. 

In the evening, small parties of the hostile savages 
were seen prowling about the encampment, although 
no attack was made. This circumstance, in connection 
with the fact that he had not been molested during the 
day, convinced General Jackson that the enemy had 
got in the advance, and were lying in wait for him at 
a dangerous defile where he had forded the creek on 

11* 



250 ANDREAV JACK^Oi?}. 

his outward march. He therefore sent out his pioneers, 
who discovered another crossing, about six hundred 
yards lower down, which was approached tlirough open 
woodlands ; and, unlike the other, its banks sloped 
gently down, and were tolerably free from reeds and 
underbrush. The lower ford was, of course, selected, in 
preference to the one above. 

Presuming that the Indians would rush upon his 
men, when they were engaged in passing the stream, 
the general made his preparations with great care, and 
issued his orders with unusual precision. Colonel Carroll 
was ordered to take command of the centre of the rear- 
guard ; Colonel Perkins of the right column ; and 
Colonel Stump of the left. Captain Russell was directed 
to bring up the rear with his company of spies. If at- 
tacked. Colonel Carroll was instructed to face about, 
display, and maintain his ground ; while the right and 
left columns were to face outward, wheel back on their 
pivots, and then attack the Indians on both flanks. 

In this order the crossing proceeded on the morning 
of the twenty-fourth. The front-guard, the wounded, 
and a part of the flank columns, had passed over ; and 
the artillery were in the act of entering the creek — 
General Jackson being on the bank superintending the 
movement — when an alarm gun was fired in the rear. 
The instant after, the whole troop of Indians, who had 
discovered the ellbrt to turn their position, came plung- 
ing down upon the rear-guard. Captain Russell received 
them gallantly, and fell back in good order. Colonel 
Carroll had scarcely given the order to halt and form, 
when the right and left columns, headed by their officers, 
broke and fled down the bank. Colonel Stump was 



SUDDENNESS 01' THE ATTACK. 251 

among the foremost, and as he approached General 
Jackson's position, the latter attempted to cut him 
down with his sword. 

All was now confusion and disorder. The panic was 
communicated to the rear-guard, most of whom followed 
the example of their companions. Colonel Carroll, and 
Captain Quarles, were left with only twenty-five men, 
yet they sustained the unequal contest with unflinching 
bravery. The savages were checked in their advance, 
but the men were rapidly falling, and the iron hail 
came thicker and faster. General Jaclcson fairly boiled 
over with rage and indignation ; yet, smothering his 
passion, he gave his orders coolly and calmly, but in a 
tone that rang like the blast of a trumpet. Words of 
encouragement were not wanting ; and when the fear- 
less and intrepid Coffee sprang from his litter into the 
saddle, he cried, " We shall whip them yet, my men ! 
— the dead have risen and come to aid us ! " 

The company of artillery, who were armed with 
muskets, now rushed up the acclivity, and ranged 
themselves by the side of Colonel Carroll and his little 
band, while their commander. Lieutenant Armstrong* 
— Captain Deadrick being absent — and a few of his 
men, dragged up their six pounder. The gun had been 
unlimbered at the foot of the height, and when they 
prepared to load it, the rammer and picker were miss- 
inw. No time was to be lost, as the savages were fast 
closing upon them. One of the men instantly wrested 

• Lieutenant Armstrong evinced the utmost bravery on this occasion. 
He was shot down, when the action was at its height, but cried out to 
his men, as he lay upon the ground, — " My brave fellows some of you 
must fall, but save the cannon ! " 



252 ANDREW JACKSO:^. 

off his bayonet, and rammed the cartridge home with 
his musket ; another used his ramrod as a picker, and 
primed with a musket cartridge. Twice was the gun 
loaded and tired witli grapeshot. At the second dis- 
charge, the enemy were thrown into confusion, when 
Colonel Carroll pressed upon them with the bayonet, 
and forced them to retire a short distance, though they 
still persisted in the attack. 

Meanwhile, Captain Gordon, whose company had 
been in the advance, had moved round and thrown 
himself upon the left flank of the Indians : and a few 
moments later, General Jackson brought up a consid- 
erable number of the rear-guard and flankers, whom he 
had rallied and reformed, with, the assistance of General 
Coffee, Colonel Higgins, and other officers. Finding 
themselves baffled at every point, the enemy gave up 
the contest and made a hasty retreat, throwing away 
their packs as they fled, and leaving twenty-six of their 
warriors dead on the field. 

In this scries of engagements, at Emuckfaw and 
Enotochopco, General Jackson lost twenty men killed, 
and seventy-five wounded, four of them mortally. One 
hundred and eighty-nine clcad bodies of the enemy were 
counted ; but they removed all their wounded, and, 
probably, many who were killed outright. 

Important as were these actions in their immediato 
results, they assumed additional consequence, as cflect- 
ing a fortunate diversion in favor of tlie troops under 
General Floyd. He was attacked by the savages, at 
Camp Defiance, shortly before daylight, on the morning 
of the twenty-seventh of January, three days after the 
battle of Enotochopco. The furious onset of the savages 



A NEW ARMY RAISED. 253 

was with difficulty resisted, and they were only repulsed 
with the loss of seventeen men killed, and one hundred 
and thirty-two wounded. Three hundred warriors, at 
the least, were rendered hors dti combat in the several 
contests with General Jackson, and many more were 
intimidated from again taking up arms ; and had they 
been present, the Georgia force might, not unlikely, 
have been overpowered. 

After caring for his dead and w^ounded, General 
Jackson resumed his march, and arrived at Fort 
Strother on the twenty-seventh of January. On the 
twenty-eighth. General Coffee and his corps of officers 
were directed to return home, and wait the orders of 
the government ; and on the thirty -first instant. General 
Roberts was ordered to conduct the volunteer regiments, 
whose bravery and patriotism were highly commended 
by th5 commanding general, back to Fayetteville, 
where they were discharged. 

The brilliant successes of General Jackson in the 
Creek country now began to attract unusual attention. 
The commander of the military district. General 
Pinckney, referred to his conduct in terms of strong 
approbation, and suggested his name to the Secretary 
of War, for an appointment in the regular army. He 
had fought himself into the confidence and alfections of 
the public, and he had no further need to depend on 
the reluctant services of a disorderly and half-mutinous 
soldiery. 

So far from being offended at the tone and language 
of General Jackson's letter, Governor Blount properly 
appreciated the feelings of the writer, and made every 
possible exertion to send him both troops and supplies. 



254 ANDREW JACKSON. 

Men were not wanting to enrol their names ; but there 
were hundreds and thousands who longed to fight be- 
neath the standard, and under the eye, of Andrew 
Jackson. On the third of February, General Dohcrty 
arrived at Camp Ross with two thousand men from 
East Tennessee; and, shortly after, General Johnston 
reported himself at Huntsville, with over seventeen 
hundred men, from West Tennessee, Two regiments 
of cavalry, one from each section of the state, under 
Colonels Dyer and Brown, also appeared, and were 
organized into a brigade, under General CofTee. On 
the sixth of February, the 39th infantry, under Colonel 
Williams, about six hundred strong, joined General 
Jackson at Fort Strother, and about the same time, 
the Choctaws took up the hatchet against the Red 
Sticks, and ofl'ered him their services. 

It was the intention of General Jackson to aclvance 
as soon as possilAe towards the bend of the Tallapoosa, 
near which the battle of Emuckfaw had been fought, 
and where, he was assured, the main strength of the 
enemy lay. The want of supplies, as usual, retarded 
his movements. It was now the rainy season ; the 
streams were very much swollen, and the bridges swept 
away ; the roads were soaked with water, and terribly 
cut up ; and, although he kept five hundred men at 
work on the route between Fort Deposit and Fort 
Strother, several weeks elapsed before he was able to 
collect twenty days' rations at the latter place. 

While the general was making his preparations at 
Fort Strother, most of the detachments composing the 
force under his command remaineJ in the rear, that the 
supplies thrown forward to that post might not be too 



PREPARATIONS TO TAKE THE FIELD. 255 

quickly consumed. During this period of inaction, the 
spirit of mutiny again made its appearance, among the 
West Tennessee troops. He felt tiiat he had so far 
dealt too leniently with this offence, and determined to 
visit it with summary punishment. A private belong- 
ing to General Johnston's command was convicted of 
open mutiny, and sentenced to death. This was his 
second offence, and the general firmly refused to pardon 
him. The sentence was carried into effect, and the 
example thus presented exerted a most salutary influ- 
ence on the whole army. 

Early in March, General Jackson had finally com- 
pleted his arrangements. Colonel Dyer was ordered to 
scour the country between the Coosa, Blackwarrior, 
and Cahawba, as low down as the old Coosa towns ; 
the Choctaws and Chickasaws were directed to watch 
the country west of the Tombigbee, and prevent 
the escape of any of the Red Sticks beyond the Mis- 
sissippi ; and the Cherokees received instructions to 
range about the headwaters of the Tallapoosa. At the 
same time, there was a large force of North Carolina 
and South Carolina militia, under Colonel Pearson, w^ho 
had relieved the Georgia troops under General Floyd, 
on the eastern borders of the Creek country, in readi- 
ness to cooperate in any simultaneous movement upon 
the fastnesses of the hostile Indians. 

Leaving a garrison of four hundred and fifty men at 
Fort Strother, under Colonel Steel, General Jackson 
commenced descending the Coosa, having embarked his 
stores in boats, with the remainder of his force, on the 
sixteenth day of March. Arrived at the mouth of Cedar 
Creek, he established a depot at this point, and com- 



256 ANDREW JACKSON. 

menced the construction of a fort, which he named 
Fort Williams. The work on the fort being in a suffi- 
cient state of forwardness, he took up the line of march 
across the country to E muck fa w, on the morning of 
the twenty-fourth instant, with about two thousand 
men. A strong detachment was left at Fort Williams, 
to protect the supplies, and continue the labor on the 
fortifications. 

Not far from five miles below the battle-ground of 
the twenty-second of January, at Emuckfaw, is the 
great bend of the Tallapoosa, called by the Indians, 
Tohopeca, or Horse Shoe. At this place, the warriors 
from the hostile towns of Oakfuskie, Oakchoya, Enfau- 
lee, New Youca, the Ilillabees and Fish Ponds, had 
concentrated tlicir forces, near one thousand strong, for 
a last desperate struggle. Across the narrow neck of 
land, or isthmus, by which the peninsula formed by the 
crooked river was entered, they had erected a breast- 
work of logs, from five to eight feet high, with double 
portholes, arranged with no little skill and ingenuity. 
Within the inclosure, there were about one hundred 
acres of land ; the centre was high ground, covered with 
brush and fallen timber ; and on the river bottom, at 
the lower extremity of the peninsula, was the Indian 
village. 

On the night of the twenty-sixth of March, General 
Jackson encamped within six miles of the Horse Shoe, 
and early on the following morning, General Coffee was 
detached, with the mounted men and most of the 
friendly Indians, under instructions to cross the river 
at a ford two miles below Tohopeca, and take posses- 
sion of the high grounds on the opposite bank, so as to 



TOIIOPECA. 257 

cut off all chance of escape in that quarter. General 
Jackson then marched the remainder of his force to a 
position in front of the enemy's breastworks, where he 
halted his men, until the prearranged signal announced 
that General Coffee had drawn a cordon of soldiers 
around the elevated ground overlooking the river and 
the hostile town and fortification. The main column 
immediately moved forward ; the two pieces of artillery, 
a%ix and a three pounder, were planted on a hill eighty 
yards distant from the left of the enemy's line ; and at 
half past ten o'clock in the forenoon, the action was 
opened by a brisk fire, which was warmly returned by 
the Red Sticks. 

The firing on the American side was mainly con- 
fined to the artillery, though a rifle or musket was oc- 
casionally discharged, whenever the dark warriors in- 
cautiously exposed their persons. For nearly two hours, 
the cannonade was kept up, with spirit and activity, 
though without producing any sensible impression. 
Meantime the friendly Indians had advanced to the 
left bank of the river, while General Coffee remained 
on the high ground with the rest of his troops. Some 
of the Cherokees now discovered that the enemy's ca- 
noes, which were drawn up on the shore, near their vil- 
lage, had been left unguarded. They instantly plunged 
into the stream, swam across, and, in a few moments, 
retnrned with a number of the "canoes. Means being 
thus provided for passing over, the Cherokees. headed 
by their chief, Richard Brown, and Colonel Morgan, 
and Captain Russell's company of spies, crossed to the 
village, set it on fire, and attacked the enemy in the 
rear. 



258 ANDREW JACKSON. 

Surronnded though they were, the hostile Indians 
fought witii the utmost bravery iind desperation. Every 
avenue by which they might have fled was occupied by 
the American troops, and their habitations were in 
flames ; still they refused to surrender, and success- 
lully resisted every attempt of the spies and Cherokecs 
to dislodge them. The soldiers with General Jackson, 
clamored loudly to be led to the assault, but he hesi- 
tated to give tlie order, till he became convinced tltat 
the party in the rear were not strong enough to over- 
come the opposition they encountered. The command 
to storm the works was then received with shouts and 
acclamations. General Doherty's brigade, and the 39th 
infantry, under Colonel AVilliams, promptly advanced 
to the attack. The result of the contest did not long 
remain in doubt. A fierce stru2:gle was maintained for 
a short time, through the portholes, muzzle to muzzle ; 
the action being so close, as remarked in the dispatch 
of the commanding general, that '' many of the enemy's 
balls were welded to the American bayonets." Major 
Montgomery, of the 39th infantry, was the first to 
spring upon the breastwork, but was shot dead among 
his comrades, who were rushing forward to sustain him. 
A smothered cry for vengeance rolled along the line, — 
and the whole column doi^hed over the feeble barrier, 
like the avalanche, crushing and bearing down every- 
thing before it. 

CD 

The Indians, fighting with tlie fury of despair, met 
the shock with clubbed muskets and rifles, with the 
gleaming knife and tomahawk. Some few attempted 
to escape by swimming the river, but were shot down 
in their flight, by the spies and mounted men under 



TlIE RED STICKS COMPLETELY ROUTED. 259 

General Coffee. Most of them, however, fought and 
died, where they stood — behind the ramparts which 
tliey were unable to defend. The conflict — nay, we 
may call it, without reproach to the victors, the butchery 
— was continued for hours. None asked for quarter. 
The Tallapoosa ran red with the blood of the savages, 
and the dead were piled in mangled heaps upon its 
banks. 

' Driven from the breastwork, a considerable number 
of the enemy took refuge among the brush and fallen 
timber on the high ground in the centre of the peninsula. 
General Jackson sent them an interpreter, to offer terras 
of capitulation, but they fired on and wounded him. 
The cannon were brought to bear on their position, and 
a partially successful charge was made, yet they were 
not dislodged. Finally, the brush was set on fire. The 
flames spread with rapidity, snapping and crackling as 
they caught the dry bark and leaves, and licking up 
everything in their way, like some huge, greedy mon- 
ster. The Indians were now forced from their conceal- 
ment ; and all who attempted to fly, or offered resist- 
ance, were shot down. Night at length put an end to 
the carnage, and, under cover of the darkness, a few of 
the survivors of that fatal field escaped into the adjoin- 
ing forests. 

Five hundred and fifty-seven dead bodies of the en- 
emy were found within the peninsula ; and there were 
over three hundred taken prisoners, nearly all women 
and children. The total loss of the Red Sticks, in killed 
alone, must have been near eight hundred ; as a num- 
ber of the dead were thrown into the river previous to 
the final rout, by their surviving friends, or shot by 



260 



ANDREW JACKSON. 



General Coffee's men while attempting to make their 
escape. Among the slain were three prophets, one of 
whom, by the name of Monohoe, was struck by a grape- 
shot in his mouth, out of wbich had issued the lies 
which had lured his nation to their ruin. 

General Jackson lost fifty-five men killed, and one 
hundred and forty-six wounded. Twenty-three of the 
killed, and forty-seven of the wounded, were friendly 
Creeks and Cherokees. 

After completing the destruction of the Indian forti- 
fications at Tohopeka, General Jackson commenced his 
return march to Fort Williams, where he arrived on 
the second of April. He instantly began his prepara- 
tions for scouring the country lying in the forks of the 
Coosa and Tallapoosa ; and, on the seventh of April, 
his army was in motion for Hoithlewalee, one of the 
principal towns on the Hickory Ground ; — the men 
being provided with eight days' rations, which they 
carried on their baclcs. The campaign was now draw- 
ing to a close, but its hardships were not quite ended. 
The roads were flooded by the heavy rains, and the 
streams scarcely fordable ; and, consequently, the march 
was tedious and difficult. General Jackson was much 
worn by the fatigues and privations which he had en- 
countered, but his capability of endurance was not yet 
exhausted ; and the strength of constitution he mani- 
fested, though belied by the apparent weakness of his 
frame, gave rise to the sobriquet of " Old Hickory," 
which was applied to him by his soldiers, and adhered 
to him through life. 

The terrible vengeance taken at Tohopeka, for the 
massacre at Fort Mims, and the other monstrous cruel- 



INDIAN TOWNS DESTROYED. 261 

ties perpetrated by the Red Sticks, put an end to the 
^var. Tlie great body of the hostile savages fled in 
dismay, before the advancing cohnnns of General Jack- 
son. Many of the fugitives were killed by a detachment 
of the 3rd infantry, under Colonel Russell, but numbers 
effected their escape into Florida, on account of the re- 
missness of Colonel Milton, the officer in command of 
the South Carolinians, who were then on the left bank 
of the Tallapoosa, not far above its junction with the 
Coosa. McQueen, one of the most prominent chiefs 
among the Red Sticks, was captured, but afterwards 
escaped to the Escambia river, with five hundred ad- 
herents. 

Arrived at Hoithlewalee, General Jackson found the 
town abandoned. On the fourteenth of April it was 
destroyed, with several other villages in the vicinity. 
The general then divided his command into two col- 
umns ; one scouring the country on the left bank, and 
the other, with which he remained in person, advancing 
down the right bank of the Tallapoosa, to the conflu- 
ence, where a fort was constructed, called by General 
Pinekney, in honor of the gallant Tennessee comman- 
der. Fort Jackson. At this point most of the Hickory 
Ground chiefs came in and submitted to the conqueror. 
Weatherford also voluntarily surrendered, and the great 
prophet of the Creeks, Hillinghagee, was taken prisoner. 
The only terms prescribed by the victorious general 
were, that all who surrendered themselves should retire 
to the country north of Fort Williams, where, if their 
conduct was good, they would be permitted to remain 
unmolested. In a few days after his humane and gen- 



262 ANDREAV JACKSOKT. 

erons proposition _\vas made known, numbers of the fu- 
gitives were on their way to the neutral territory. 

On the twentieth of April, General Pinckney arrived 
at Fort Jackson, and on the following day assumed the 
command. General Jackson shortly after repaired to 
liis home in Tennessee, to recruit his health and strength, 
which had suffered inaterially during his long and ar- 
duous campaign. The thanks of the government and 
the applause of the nation followed him in his retire- 
ment. An opportunity was soon afforded for rewarding 
his services by an appointment in the regular array. — 
On the resignation of Genei-al Harrison, President Mad- 
ison nominated him as a brigadier general, and major 
general by brevet ; and, a short time afterwards, he 
was appointed a full major general, to fill the vacancy 
occasioned by the retirement of General Hampton. 
Both commissions were received at the same time, and 
the latter was accepted. 

In the summer of 1814, General Jackson was ordered 
to take command of the seventh military district, and 
established iiis headquarters at Mobile. Associated 
with Colonel Hawkins, he concluded a favorable treaty 
with the Creek nation, by which, with the exception of 
a ."Small portion of the tribe who chose to remain in 
Florida, they were prevented from again taking up 
arms during the continuance of the war with England. 

The hostile tribes were now entirely quieted, and a 
chain of military posts established through the former 
theatre of their outrages. No sooner iiad this been 
done, than the attention of General Jackson was di- 
rected to the alarming state of affairs at Pcnsacola. 
He had long been convinced that the Spanish authori- 



THE SPANISH AUTHORITIES IN FLORIDA. 263 

ties in Florida were lending their aid and assistance to 
the English, in the prosecution of hostilities. Indeed, 
the facts and circumstances which forced him to such 
a conclusion, were so glaring and palpable, that it was 
impossible to form any other opinion. It is barely prob- 
able that 8pain was the passive agent of Great Britain 
in this respect; but if so, her pusillanimity, in thus 
tamely surrendering her neutral rights and character, 
was equally censurable. If she was, in fact, the coad- 
jutor of England, the measures adopted by General 
Jackson were justifiable ; but if she was the creature 
only, they were necessary. This is the only argument 
that need be offered, in defence of the attack on Pensa- 
cola, which, in after times, was so severely criticised 
and censured, by his political opponents. 

In the month of August, Captain Gordon, of the 
spies, visite*,l Pensacola, and ascertained that a large 
body of savages had been organized there by Colonel 
Nicholls, of the British army, and were then being in- 
structed and drilled by British officers, in tiie presence, 
and with the knowledge, of the Spanish governor ; that 
Fort Barrancas was occupied by between two and three 
liundred British troops ; and that there were three 
armed vessels belonging to the same nation, in the bay, 
from which a considerable quantity of arms and provi- 
sions had been disembarked. Another reconnaissance 
was subsequently made by Lieutenant Murray, of the 
Mississippi militia, which fully confirmed the report 
made by Captain Gordon. On the twenty-ninth of 
August, also, Colonel Nicholls issued a proclamation, 
dated at his " headquarters, Pensacola," addressed 
te the inhabitants of the southern and southwestern 



264 ANDREW JACKSO:^. 

states, and inviting them to join his standard, in which 
lie informed them that he was " at the head of a large 
body of Indians, well armed, disci{3lined, and commanded 
by British officers; a good train of artillery, with every 
requisite ; seconded by the powerful aid of a numerous 
British and Spanish squadron of ships and vessels of 
war." 

General Jackson was not disposed to stand idly by, 
and see the rights of his country violated, and her in- 
terests jeoparded. He forthwith dispatched an express 
to the governor of Tennessee, requesting the whole quota 
of tlie militia of that state to be brought into the field 
without delay, and commenced his preparations for a 
march on Pensacola. On the fifteenth of September 
Colonel Nicholls appeared before Fort Bowyer, thirty 
miles below IMoLhIc, at the entrance of the bay, with 
four vessels, containing a number of siege pieces, and 
several hundred sailors, mariners, and savages. The 
heavy guns were landed, the fort invested, and a lively 
cannonade opened upon it. Major Lawrence, of the 2nd 
infantry, the commander of the post, with its garrison 
of one hundred an'l twenty men, made a brave defence, 
(ind fuially forced the enemy to retire, with the loss of 
one of their ships, and over two hundred killed and 
wounded. 

Having been joined by about two thousand men fron 
Tennessee, General Jackson took up the line of march 
for Pensacola, with all his disposable troops. His whole 
force consisted of upwards of three thousand men, but 
a small part being regulars, and the remainder militia 
from Mississippi and Tennessee, with a few Choctaw 
warriors. On the sixth of November he arrived near 



CAPTURE OF PENSACOLA. 265 

Pensacola, and sent a flag to the Spanish governor, to 
communicate the purpose of his visit. The bearer of 
the flag was fired on from the batteries in the town, and 
forced to return. Dispositions were then made for car- 
rying the fort by assault, which was discovered to be 
defended by both British and Spanish troops, on the 
following day. On the morning of the seventh, the 
general entered the town with his troops, under a heavy 
fire from the fort, and the British flotilla in the harbor, 
and carried one of the advanced batteries at the point 
of the bayonet. The governor now supplicated for 
mercy, and surrendered the town and fort uncondition- 
ally ; the British troops retiring to Fort Barrancas, and 
their savages allies seeking shelter in the everglades 
of Florida, whither they were driven by a detachment 
from the American army under Major Blue. 

On the morning of the eighth of November, just as 
General Jackson was making ready to march upon 
Fort Barrancas, the British spiked and dismounted the 
cannon, blew up the works, and retreated to their ship- 
ping. The object of his visit to Pensacola being thus 
accomplished, and the enemy driven from the rendez- 
vous, where they had been invited, or welcomed, by the 
Spanish authorities, General Jackson restored the town 
and fort to Governor INIanriquez, and immediately re- 
turned to Mobile with his troops. 

Intimations of an intended attack, or descent, on the 
southern frontier of the United States, had been prc;- 
viously given, and they were corroborated by the state- 
ments of the pirates of Barrataria, who, with their 
leader, Lafitte, had been solicited by Colonel Nicholls 
1 to join the projected expedition, but were afterwards in- 

12 



/ 

266 ANDREW JACKSON. 

duced, under a promise of pardon for their offences, to 
take an active and important part in the defence of 
New Orleans. It was for a long time uncertain at 
what point the blow would be struck ; bnt, early in 
September, it became known that formidable prepara- 
tions were making for the invasion of Louisiana, and 
the reduction of New Orleans. Governor Claiborne 
promptly ordered the two militia divisions of the state, 
under Generals Villere and Thomas, to hold themselves 
in readiness to march at a moment's notice, and issued 
a patriotic address to his fellow citizens, calling upon 
them to turn out, in a mass, if necessary, in defence of 
their homes and families. No immediate attack Nvas 
then made, however, and the alarm subsided. It Avas ' 
renewed again towards the close of November ; the ap- 
prehensions of danger were evidently well founded, and 
General Jackson at once hastened to the city of New 
Orleans, giving directions, before ho set out, for his i| 
troops to follow as rapidly as possible, and dispatching , 
an express to expedite the movements of the Kentucky ; 
militia, who were required to join him without loss of 
time. 

Important as was the position of New Orleans, as the . 
great emporium of the southwestern part of the Union, 
commanding the extensive trade and navigation of tlie 
i\Iississippi and its tributaries, the means provided for i 
its defence were lamentably insufficient. It had been i 
understood for some time, that the expedition under | 
Admiral Cochrane, baflled at Baltimore, but subsa- 1 
quently reinforced by a largo body of troops, supposed, 
after the conclusion of the Treaty of Paris, to bo no 
longer needed in Em-npe, was destined, ultimately, to; 



THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS. 267 

Operate upon the Gulf coast. Although New Orleans 
was the most liable to attack, and the most vulnerable 
pohit, in that quarter, few preparations were made for 
its protection ; for the reason, probably, that the plun- 
dering and harassing warfare carried on by the enemy 
on the Atlantic shore, and the operations on the Niagara 
frontier, furnished constant employment for all the men 
and means at the disposal of the General Government. 
Late in the fall of 1814, the new levies raised in Ken- 
tucky and Tennessee, were ordered to proceed to that 
city, and supplies of arms and ammunition were also 
sent down the INIississippi. 

New Orleans, at this time, contained about twenty 
thousand inhabitants,* a great number of whom were 
of Spanish or English descent, and, consequently, but 
little reliance was to be placed on their fidelity to the 
American cause ; so far from this, many were known 
to be in correspondence with the enemy, and only wait- 
ing for a favorable opportunity to act in a more open 
and decided manner. General Jackson arrived in the 
city on the second of December, and found everything 
in confusion and alarm. The apprehended invasion 
was the principal topic of conversation in every cafe 
and boudoir. The opponents of the administration 
there, as elsewhere throughout the union, confidently 
predicted that New Orleans must fall ; and its friends 
more than half feared that the prediction would be ver- 
ified. 

It was no easy task to reanimate those who had grown 
faint-hearted under the influence of the pitiful Jeremiads 
which were constantly sounding in their ears. The 

* In 1810. the population was 17,2^12. 



268 ANDREW JACKSON, 

American commantler was accompanied by but few of 
his men, and liis presence alone could not go very far 
towards the restoration of confidence. Yet he set him- 
self vigorously to the work, and in a brief space of time, 
his impulsive energy, his earnest zeal, and his deter- 
mined patriotism had v/rought marvellous changes. 
The timid were reassured ; the wavering were encour- 
aged to remain steadfast ; and those who had never 
doubted or faltered, derived new strength from his ex- 
ample. As yet, there were but a few hundred regular 
troops in the city, and the imminence of the danger was 
such, that it was necessary to commence operations 
without delay. The general was deficient both in the 
personnel and the materiel of war ; but the exigencies 
of his military career had long since taught him to rely 
on his own unaided efforts. He was ever full of re- 
sources, — but never more than now. 

The geographical position of New Orleans was highly 
favorable to its defence. It is situated on the left bank 
of the Mississippi, around a bend of the river, shaped 
like a crescent, about midway between the high ground 
at Baton Rouge, and the Gulf. On either side of the 
river, there is a strip of arable alluvion, protected from 
inundation by levees, and varying in width, from three 
hundred, to one thousand yards. Beyond this there are 
dense cypress brakes and swamps, with here and there 
a few acres of salt prairie, extending, on the east, to 
Lakes Borsrne and Pontchartrain. The river debouches 
into the Gulf through several mouths, which are ob- 
structed by numerous sand bars ; and its ascent, at all 
times difficult, is especially so in high water, when the 
current is unusually rapid. 



APPROACH OF THE BRITISH FLEET. 269 

Under the direction of General Jackson, the militia 
were imbodied ; the defences of Forts St. Philip and 
Bourbon, on the Mississippi, below New Orleans, were 
cnlarsfed and strengthened ; batteries were constructed 
at the Rigolets, and on the Chef IMenteur ; all the 
numerous bayous and inlets, intersecting the lower 
valley of the river, between the Chef Menteur and the 
Atchafalaya, were obstructed, or guarded by strong 
pickets ; and lines of intrenchments and fortifications 
were traced, below the city, extending from the Missis- 
sippi to the swampy grounds, and their construction 
commenced. Commodore Patterson, the officer in com- 
mand of the naval station, zealously cooperated with 
General Jackson, in carrying out the measures of de- 
fence which he projected. 

Positive intelligence was received in New Orleans, 
on the ninth of December, that the British fleet had 
been descried standing oif the Chandeleur islands; 
and Lieutenant Thomas Ap Catesby Jones was imme- 
diately dispatched by Commodore Patterson, with a flo- 
tilla of five gun boats, and one hundred and eighty-two 
men, to watch the motions of the enemy. On the 
twelfth instant, they were discovered in such force, oft' 
Cat island, at the eastern extremity of Lake Borgne, 
that Lieutenant Jones judged it safer to retire up the 
lake and guard the passes leading towards the city. On 
the following day, the schooner Seahorse, which had 
been sent to the bay of St. Louis, to assist in the re- 
moval of some public stores at Shieklsboro, was attacked 
by three of the enemy's barges. These were driven off", 
but they soon returned with four others. The crew 
then abandoned the vessel and blew her up ; and the 



270 ANDREW JACKSON. 

storehouse on the bay was set on fire. The flotilla 
under Lieutenant Jones was attacked on the fourteenth 
instant, while becalmed, by a detachment of seamen 
and marines, twelve hundred strong, under Captain 
Lockyer, in forty-two launches and barges. Lieutenant 
Jones and his men made a brave defence ; but after an 
obstinate contest of more than an hour, during which 
the enemy lost two of their boats, and over three hun- 
dred men, they were obliged to surrender, with the loss 
of forty killed and wounded. 

In the meantime, large appropriations had been made 
by the legislature of Louisiana for the defence of New 
Orleans ; but that body appeared extremely reluctant 
to adopt all the suggestions of General Jackson and 
Governor Claiborne. Many of the members were dis- 
affected, and others had been led to believe, by the 
British spies and emissaries M'^ho infested the city, that 
all attempts at resistance would be unavailing, and that 
it would be far wiser to propose terms of capitulation, 
immediately upon the appearance of the British force. 
General Jaclcson in vain urged the legislature to sus- 
pend the liaheas corpus act ; and despairing of accom- 
plishing anything, except by the adoption of rigorous 
and decided measures, as a last resort, he finally ordered 
martial law to be proclaimed in the city and its vicinity. 
The functions of the civil authorities were only sus- 
pended in part, however, and the legislature continued 
its sessions. 

This high-handed exercise of power, rendered neces- 
sary by the temporizing and vacillating course of the 
legislature, naturally provoked considerable comment. 
Those who were really and truly devoted to the Amer- 



PROCLAMATION OF MARTIAL LAA\'. 271 

ican cause had no feai\s, when they saw the general 
wielding the authority which he had seized into his own 
hands ; those only clamored against what they termed 
this infraction of the rights of the citizen, who were 
])repared to surrender the city to the enemy, at the first 
summons. The proclamation of martial law, though, 
perhaps, scarcely warranted by the law and the consti- 
tution, was one of those acts which are sometimes ab- 
solutely requisite in great emergencies. The power 
acquired under such circumstances, is, doubtless, liable 
to abuse ; but in the hands of one whose patriotism, 
like that of Andrew Jackson, is sanspeur, sans reproche, 
there can be no danger. " Silent leges, inter arma^'' 
is a maxim, as applicable to free, as to monarchical 
governments. General Jackson was extremely loth to 
assume any questionable power, until he became pene- 
trated with the conviction that the safety of the country 
demanded this step, and he surrendered it the very mo- 
ment he felt assured that the crisis was past. His 
course was subsequently approved by the General Gov- 
ernment, and pronounced by the Secretary of War, botli 
" just as it respected the responsibility of the command- 
ing general, and safe as it respected the liberties of the 
nation." 

A new impetus was given to every movement, by 
the active and energetic conduct of General Jackson. 
The fruitful and varied resources of his great mind 
were in constant requisition. His determined spirit, 
manifested in his expressive remark to Governor Clai- 
borne — that he would " defend the country, or die in 
the last ditch !" — was communicated to those around 
hiuL Treason shrunk abashed from his presence, and 



272 ANDREW JACKSON. 

cowardice assumed the appearance of valor at his 
side. 

After the capture of the flotilla under Lieutenant 
Jones, it became impossible to watch the movements 
of the British spuadron ; and hence it was extremely 
difficult to foretell what point would be first attacked. 
Large requisitions were made by General Jackson, of 
negroes to work on the projected fortifications, intended 
to secure the different approaches ; and all those found 
in the streets, together with the drays and carts, were 
impressed for the same purpose. The militia were or- 
dered out en masse, and disciplined regularly every day. 
Orders were likewise again sent to hasten the march 
of the reinforcements ; and to General Coffee, who was 
rapidly approaching with his brigade of mounted men 
from Tennessee, the commanding general said, " You 
must not sleep until you arrive within striking dis- 
tance !" The order was obeyed with characteristic 
promptitude ; — General Coffee marched his command 
eighty miles on the last day, and arrived near the city 
late in the evening of the twenty-first of December. 

All the arrangements of General Jackson for the de- 
fence of New Orleans were made with consummate 
skill. The batteries commanding the passes from Lake 
Borgne into Lake Pontehartrain were well manned ; 
the colored battalion, under Major Lacoste, with the 
Feliciana dragoons, were ordered to take post on the 
Chef Menteur, to cover the Gentilly road; INIajor 
Plauche's battalion, with Lieutenant Wagner's com- 
pany of light artiUery, were stationed at Fort St. John, 
on the bayou of that name ; the Tennessee cavalry and 
infantry, under Generals Coffee and Carroll, rejriaineJ 



LANDING OF THE ENEMY. 273 

about four miles above the city ; the regular troops, 
and the remainder of the state militia, occupied the 
city, and the fortifications on the river below ; and the 
schooner Caroline and brig Louisiana were moored in 
the stream. 

The watchful care and vigilance of the American 
commander were frustrated, however, by the want of 
due caution on the part of a picket posted near the 
mouth of the bayou Bienvenu, which led up from Lake 
Borgne. On the twenty-second of December, the picket 
was surprised by a party of the enemy, belonging to the 
division of General Keane, whose whole command, 
about four thousand five hundred in number, with their 
heavy cannon and stores, immediately proceeded, in 
their small boats, up the bayou, and, at four o'clock 
in the morning of the twenty-third, arrived opposite the 
opening of Villere's canal, which connected with the 
Mississippi. They halted at this point for a few hours, 
and then continued up the canal. Early in the after- 
noon of the same day, they gained the bank of the river 
unmolested, and established themselves on the planta- 
tions of General Villere, Colonel La Ronde, and Major 
Lacoste, about eight miles below the city. 

General Jackson did not wait to be attacked. 
Within an hour after receiving the information that 
the enemy had effected a landing, he put his troops in 
motion. Anticipating that the city might be sitpulta- 
neously threatened by way of the Chef Menteur, Gen- 
eral Carroll was left posted on the Gentilly road, with 
his command and the city militia ; and the remainder 
of the troops, under General Jackson in person, con- 
sisting of General Coffee's brigade, Major Hind's dra- 

12* 



274 ANDREW JACKSON. 

goons, a detachment of artillery and marines, under 
Colonel McRea, parts of the 7th and 44th infantry, the 
battahons of Majors Plauche and Daquin, and two six 
pounder guns in charge of Lieutenant Spotts, moved 
down the left bank of the river, to attack the enemy 
who had landed below. The schooner Caroline, Cap- 
tain Henley, with Commodore Patterson on board, and 
the brig Louisiana, Lieutenant Thompson, also dropped 
down the river. It was understood that the signal of 
attack would be the fire of the Caroline, when she had 
arrived opposite the position of the British troops. 

At six o'clock in the evening of the twenty-third, 
the different corps composing the main column, in all 
not far from two thousand men, effected a junction at 
the canal Rodriguez, withiu sight of the watch fires of 
the enemy, which were discovered gleaming dimly in 
the distance. The night was prematurely dark, owing 
to the dense fog rising from the river. This circum- 
stance, however, favored the movement, as it was 
thereby concealed from tlie enemy ; and the very best 
spirit pervaded the whole command. The troops were 
now formed for the attack ; — the artillery and marines, 
and the regular infantry, on the right ; the battalions 
of Plauche and Daquin, both under Colonel Ross, in 
the centre ; and the brigade of General Coffee, dis- 
mounted, on the left. General Coffee was directed to 
turn the enemy's right, and attack them in the rear : 
while the rest of the colunui advanced against them in 
front. 

At half-past seven o'clock, the long looked-for sio-nal 
was given by the Caroline. The first intimation re- 
ceived by the enemy, of the approach of the Americans, 



NIGHT ATTACK. 



275 



was the raking broadside of the schooner, which com- 
pletely swept their encampment. Before they had fairly 
]-ecovered from their astonishment, General Jackson tell 
upon them like a thunderbolt. Though taken by sur- 
prise, General Keane ordered his fires to be extinguished, 
and finally succeeded in forming his men to beat off the 
attack. Before order was entirely restored, General 
Collee had forced his way into the enemy's camp, and 
General Jackson was moving upon them in front with 
equal darmg and impetuosity. 

Notwithstanding the intense darkness, the American 
soldiers were kept to their duty, and displayed the most 
praiseworthy gallantry. The enemy were driven from 
their position, and several successive charges were made, 
with great success. At length, it was discovered that 
the troops were falling into confusion, on account of the 
thick mist which shrouded everything around, and 
General Jackson thought it best to call off his men. 
During the remainder of the night they lay on the field 
of battle, and in the morning fell back to the canal 
Rodriguez, about two miles nearer the city, where the 
swamp and the ]Mississippi approached within a few 
iumdred yards of each other. 

The American loss in the engagement on the even- 
ing of the twenty-third, was twenty-four killed, one 
hundred and- fifteen wounded, and seventy-four taken 
prisoners ; that of the British was forty-six killed, one 
hundred and seventy-four wounded, and sixty-four miss- 
ing. But the most important result of the action, was 
the check given to the operations of the enemy. They 
were taught to respect their antagonists far more than 
they had done ; and, when they were informed by their 



276 ANDREW JACKSON. 

prisoners, who designed to deceive them, that the Amer- 
ican force was at least fifteen thousand strong, they 
began to think the conquest of New Orleans woald not, 
after all, be a mere holiday atfair. 

General Jackson decided to make a stand at the po- 
sition to which he retired on the morning of the twenty- 
fourth of December, as it was ascertained that rein- 
forcements were constantly arriving at the enemy's 
camp. The work of fortifying it was instantly com- 
menced. The canal Rodriguez, which was about four 
feet deep, served the purpose of a ditch ; and, behind 
this, a breastwork was constructed, stretching from the 
Mississippi on the right, about one thousand yards, to 
the cypress swamp on the left. The line extended 
some distance into the marsh and then inclined to the 
right, in order to prevent any attempt to turn that flank. 
The underbrush and trees in this quarter were also 
cleared away for a considerable space, so that an assail- 
ing column could not approach without being exposed 
to a destructive fire. Earth being scarce in this low 
country, General Jackson had recourse to a novel ex- 
pedient. Bales of cotton, in large numbers, were brought 
from the city, which were placed in line and covered 
over with dirt. Flank bastions to enfilade the works, 
and strong batteries, were also constructed, at irregular 
intervals. 

On the right bank of the Mississippi, about half a 
mile in advance of General Jackson's main position, a 
line of intrenchments, extending frojn the river to the 
low grounds, was also formed, and a heavy battery of 
lifteen guns established, wliich enfiladed the whole front 
of the position on the left bank. In addition to this 



SKIRAIISHING. 277 

principal line of intrenchment?, there were others formed 
in the rear, to which General Jackson designed to re- 
treat, in succession, if the enemy forced Iiim to abandon 
his first position. Another precaiitionury measure was 
likewise adopted, to render his main line more secure 
against attack. 81nices were opened through the levee, 
and the plains in front flooded with water from the 
river. The general was so carried away with zeal and 
enthusiasm, and so deeply impressed with the great re- 
sponsibility resting upon him, and the importance of 
every step, that for four days and nights, while his 
preparations were in progress, he scarcely took a mo- 
ment's rest. No crisis seemed to be too great for him ; 
his vigilance became more keen sighted, and his spirits 
rose higher, as dangers thickened around his path ; his 
resources grew more ample as the occasion required, 
and his resolution hourly grew more stern and un- 
bending. 

Sir Edward Packenham, the Commander in Chief 
of the British land forces, joined General Keane on the 
twenty-fourth of December with heavy reinforcements, 
and an additional supply of artillery. Frequent skir- 
mishes took place between detached parties of the hos- 
tile commands, and on the twenty-seventh instant, the 
schooner Caroline, which had been prevented from as- 
cending the river by a strong norther, was blown up by 
hot shot thrown from a battery erected by the enemy, 
on the night of the twenty-sixth. Fortunately, the 
crew of the vessel had previously made their escape. 
A similar attempt was made upon the brig Louisiana, 
but her commander. Lieutenant Thompson, succeeded 



S78 ANDREW JACKSON. 

in getting her up the river, and anchored her on the 
right of General Jackson's position. 

It was at first designed by Ihe British commander, 
to commence regular approaches against the formidable 
line of intrenchments occupied by the American troops. 
On the twenty-eighth of December, a brisk cannonade 
was opened from a battery planted near the levee, 
within half a mile of the river. Showers of Congreve 
rockets were also thrown, which, although a new im- 
plement of warfare,* failed to excite either fear or as- 
tonishment in the opposing ranks. The firing was kept 
up for several hours without producing any sensible ef- 
fect; and the attack was then relinquished. During 
the night of the thirty-first, heavy batteries were con- 
structed on the plain, directly in front of the American 
position ; and the advent of the new year was welcomed 
by a tremendous burst of artillery, accompanied by in- 
cessant iiiiihts of rockets, which was continued till three 
o'clock in the afternoon, when the batteries were effect- 
ually silenced by the American guns. The casualties 
on these two occasions were, — on the side of the Amer- 
icans, eighteen killed and thirty-one wounded ; and, on 
the side of the enemy, forty-eight killed, and eighty- 
two wounded. 

These repeated efforts having proved of no avail. 
General Packenham decided to carry the works by a 
coup tie main. For a number of days all his men 
were employed in deepening Villere's canal, for the pas- 

* Rockets were first used at the battle of Lcipsic, in October, 1813. 
The English rocket brigade in that bloody engagement, was commanded 
by Captain Boguc ; and, after playing ten minutes on a sohd square of 
French infantry, they forced them to surrender.— Zyor(i Londondcrnj s 
War in (jrcrmaivj, 17:2. 



DISAFFECTION IN THU CITY. 279 

sage of the boats, by which a detaclnnent could be 
thrown across the river to attack the fortifications on 
the right bank. On the sixth instant, General Lam- 
bert joined the main body of the enemy, already on 
shore, with his division ; and the whole command was 
thus increased to upwards of twelve thousand men. 
Everything being in readiness for the contemplated as- 
sault, on the evening of the seventh instant, it was di- 
rected to take place at dawn of day on the following 
mornins'. 

o 

Meanwhile General Jackson had been actively em- 
ployed in completing his preparations. Near the river, 
and in advance of the cotton embankment, he com- 
menced the construction of a redoubt, with embrasures, 
calculated to rake the ditch in front of the intrench- 
ments, and the road down the levee ; but this was still 
incomplete on the eighth of January. The line Dupre, 
about two miles in rear of the main line, to whieh he 
desisrned to retreat and make a second stand, if he 
should be compelled to retire, was also strengthened as 
far as practicable. Various devices were employed to 
mislead the enemy in regard to his position, and the 
strength of his command, which was daily rendered 
more necessary, on account of the increasing disaffec- 
tion in the city. The number of his men was repre- 
sented to be greater than it was ; their deficiency in . 
arms was carefully concealed ; and no intercourse was 
■ allowed between the lines and the city, except through 
officers in whom he had the most implicit confidence. 

In spite of all his precautions, the enemy were in- 
formed by their agents of every movement that took 
place, and the disaffection which they eagerly fomented. 



280 ANDREW JACKSON. 

ultimately increased to such an extent, that it was 
seriously proposed that terms of surrender should be 
oft'ered by the legislature. On being apprised of this 
treasonable design, General Jackson directed Governor 
Claiborne, whenever such a proposition was made, to 
close the doors of the state-house. The order was mis- 
understood by the governor, who closed the doors forth- 
with, and the members of the legislature were thus 
prevented from assembling. The conunanding general 
did not design to interrupt their ordinary deliberations, 
but it was probably fortunate for the safety of the city, 
that they were not allowed to convene. 

On the fourth of January, the anxiously-expected 
reinforcements from Kentucky, under Generals Thomas 
and Adair, twenty-five hundred strong, reached New 
Orleans. Tlicy were poorly furnished with arms, how- 
ever, and, like most of the other troops, were nearly 
destitute of clothing. The city was ransacked in 
search of weapons, but a scanty supjily could be ob- 
tained ; and the other deficiency w^as partially remedied, 
by the patriotic exertions of Mr. Girod, the mayor, and 
the ladies of New Orleans. 

General Jackson now made a final disposition of his 
troops. Governor Claiborne was posted on the Gentilly 
road, with a portion of the Louisiana militia ; another 
portion, under General Morgan, was stationed on the 
right bank of the river, and the battery on that shore 
was manned by the sailors and marines under Com- 
modore Patterson. General Morgan was further rein- 
forced, on the night of the seventh of January, when 
it was ascertained that the enemy were opening a pas- 
sage into the river, by a detachment of Ihe Kentucky 



THE EIGHTH OF JANUARY. 281 

troops. On the left bank, General Jackson was posted 
\vith his main column, consisting of about thirty-five 
hundred men. There were eight distinct batteries 
along the line, mounting, in all, twelve guns and two 
howitzers. On the right, were the 7th and 44th infantry, 
between whit^h were the battalions of Majors Plauche, 
Lacoste, and Daquin ; in the centre was General Car- 
roll's command, supported by that of General Adair ; 
and, on the extreme left, were the Tennessee rifles 
under General Coflee. The remainder of the Kentucky 
troops, under General Thomas, remained in the rear. 

The brave troops whom General Jackson had gath- 
ered around him calmly awaited the approach of the 
enemy, behind the breastwork of cotton bags which 
their sagacious commander had provided, not as a shel- 
ter for cowardice, but as a protection against the onset 
of a superior force. Night after night they slept upon 
.their arms ; the soldiers of Coffee lying far out in the 
swamp, on heaps of logs and brush, half benumbed 
vrith the cold, and covered with the moist ooze of the 
morass ; yet all indifferent to the inclemency of the 
weather, to hardship and suffering, and anxious only to 
win new laurels for the general whom they loved and 
honored. 

The wintry dawn was just breaking, and the cold 
silvery sheen of the early morning was rapidly spread- 
ing over the plams of Chalmette, on the memorable 
eighth of January, 1815, when the dark masses of the 
British assaulting columns were discerned from the 
American lines, as they emerged from the thick veil 
of mist which intercepted the view of their encampment, 
and rapidly pressed forward to the storm. At the same 



282 ANDREW JACKSON. 

time, their batteries, planted on the previous night, 
within eight hundred yards of the intrenchments, com- 
menced an active foe, which soon deepened into a con- 
tinuous roar, that shook the whole valley, and started 
the inhabitants of the city from their slumbers. 

Simultaneously wath the m.ovement on the left banlc 
of the river, Colonel Thornton crossed the stream with 
five hundred picked men, ascended the levee, and, by a 
sudden charge, turned the position, and made himself 
master of the battery, Vv^iich formed the strong point 
of the line. General Morgan was at the head of a much 
superior force, but finding himself unable to maintain 
his ground, he fell back towards the city, followed slowly 
by the British troops. 

Upon the other shore, the most desperate and un- 
flinching valor failed to achieve the least substantial 
success. The main attack, on this bank of the river, 
was made in two columns, sixty or seventy deep ; that 
on the right, between eight and nine thousand strong, 
led by General Gibbs, moving upon the centre of Jack- 
son's position ; and the left, about twelve hundred m 
number, under General Keane, advancing along the 
levee road. The Britisli troops moved forward slowly 
and steadily, many of them carrying scaling ladders 
and fascines. " Beauty and booty" was the watchword 
which inspired their zeal, and quickened their steps.* 
A great number of them had served in the Spanish 

* In 1833, a card was published by General Lambert, and four otlier 
British officers, of high rank, wlio were engaged in the expedition against 
New Orleans, denying, most emphatically, that this was the countersign 
on the occasion alluded to m the text. An order-book was found, how- 
ever, on the field of battle, which shows that the watchword was given. 
It is very possible Ihnt the word may have been used by a different di- 



TERRIBLE SLAUGHTER OF THE ENEMY. 283 

Peninsula ; and it is not to be wondered that this appeal 
to the unholy passions that were suffered to riot un- 
checked at the storming of St. Sebastian, produced its 
legitimate effect. 

Three hearty cheers rose from the American lines, 
when the enemy came within range. Every piece was 
instantly put m requisition. A well-sustained rolling 
fire welcomed the assailants as they approached. Still, 
the regularity of their array was unbroken. Torrents 
of grape and round shot, hissing hot, swept through the 
solid columns, rending them asunder like ropes of sand. 
Yet they pressed on undaunted, through the driving 
storm of missiles poured upon them from the different 
batteries, whose converging fires smote them more and 
more heavily at every step of their advance, and strewed 
the plain with the dying and the dead. 

Meantime the American infantry and riflemen had 
remained at their posts, with their hands clenched about 
the locks of their pieces, attentively watching the move- 
ments of the enemy. General Jackson himself occa- 
sionally rode along the lines, to cheer and animate his 
men. It was, indeed, a critical period for his own fame, 
for the martial reputation of his country. His chivalrio 
courage, his proud and lofty self-reliance, rose with the 
emergency. His eagle eye blazed with an almost un- 
earthly light, and the shrill notes of his trumpet voice 
jang hio^h above the roar of battle. 

Making their way through the heaps of their com- 
rades, who lay weltering in their gore, pale, distorted, 
and stiffening in death, the British soldiers advanced 

vision from that to which those officers belonged ; this is much more 
probable than that they could be mistaken in their assertion. 



284 ANDREW JACKSON. 

within reach of the American rifle and musket. In an 
instant, a vivid stream of fire rolled down from the 
whole line of intrenchments. The way was now blocked 
by a glistening wall of flame. The bravest shrank back 
aghast. Stout-hearted men, who had never faltered 
amid the sea of carnage whose crimson waves dyed the 
ramparts of Badajoz, trembled like the aspen. The 
American fire was never for a moment interrupted, — 
the western riflemen making their mark at every dis- 
charge, and the men in the rear constantly loading and 
exchanging pieces with their companions in front. At 
the head of the glacis, the right column of the assailants 
staggered and halted. Generals Pakenham and Gibbs 
dashed forward, eager to retrieve the fortunes of the 
day ere all was lost. In vain was every eflbrt to turn 
the tide of battle. Both officers fell mortally wounded, 
while hundreds were swept down around them, as the 
grass before the mower. Some few pressed on, — on 
and on, — to sure destruction ! 

On the left, the advance of General Keane's column, 
led by Colonel Rennie, gained the redoubt in front of 
the line of intrenchments ; but it was only to find a 
soldier's grave. A murderous fire was at once directed 
upon them from the main fortification, and every man 
who had entered the work, including the gallant oflicer 
who headed the attack, was cut down. General Keano 
made an ineffectual effort to rally the troops for another 
onset, and was borne from the field severely wounded. 
'I'he command now devolved on General Lambert, who 
promptly led up the reserve ; but on discovering the 
dreadful havoc which had been made in the shattered 



FINAL REPULSE OF THE ASSAILANTS. 285 

and terrified column before him, he gave the signal to 
retire. 

At mid-day the battle was ended ; the bright sun 
looked down on that red waste, everywhere marred by 
the ploughing shot, and dotted all over with huge piles 
of festering corruption ; and the cool breeze that mur- 
mured among the acacia and orange groves, was loaded 
with scents of slaughter, with the steam of the battle- 
field. The appalling fire from the American lines was 
most terrible in its efiects. The British lost two hun- 
dred and ninety-three killed, twelve hundred and sixty- 
seven wounded, and there were four hundred and eighty- 
four taken prisoners. The American loss was trifling 
in comparison ; there were but thirteen killed, thirty- 
nine wounded, and nineteen missing, on both sides of 
the river, during the day.* 

General Lambert determined, on the day after this 
bloody repulse, not to prosecute further the hopeless en- 
terprise. The detachment thrown across the river was 
recalled, and preparations commenced for the reem- 
barkation. The ditches and field in front of the Amer- 
ican line, were cleared of the debris of the assaulting 
army, and a warm cannonade was kept up by the ar- 

* There is one consideration not often noticed in connection with the 
defence of New Orleans, whicli gives it additional importance. It is ex- 
tremely doubtful, whether the city would have been surrendered to the 
Americans, under the treaty of peace, had it been captured. Spain never 
cordially acquiesced in the transfer of the territory of Louisiana from 
France to the United States, and her minister at Washington, the Mar- 
quis of Trujo. formally protested ajrainst it. At this time England was 
peculiarly zealous in taking care of Spanish interests, and in a letter ad- 
dressed to the American, by the British Commissioners, at Ghent, on the 
8th of October, 1814, these facts were stated, and the right of France to 
make the cession was seriously called in question. 



286 ANDREW JACKSON- 

tillery for several days ; but, on the night of the 
eighteenth of January, the enemy evacuated ail their 
positions, and retreated to their shipping. Eight of 
their heavy guns were abandoned, and eighty of their 
wounded were left to the humanity of General Jack- 
son, a duty which, in the language of a not too partial 
historian, he discharged " with a zeal and attention 
worthy of the ability and gallantry he had displayed in 
the action."* About the same time, the British fleet, 
which had ascended the Mississippi, and bombarded 
Fort St. Philip, unsuccessfully, for about eight days, 
from the eleventh to tlie nineteenth of January, retired 
do^^^l the river. Having taken the land forces on board, 
the squadron proceeded to Mobile bay and invested 
Fort Bowyer, which surrendered after a short resistance. 
This proved a barren victory, however, as a treaty of 
peace had been concluded in December previous, which 
was officially proclaimed on the eighteenth of.February. 

All immediate danger having vanished, CTcneral Jack- 
sun, and his victorious troops, entered the city of New 
Orleans in triumph, on the twentieth day of January. 
Fetes and rejoicings now took the place of the conster- 
nation and alarm which liad prevailed. The hero of 
Chalmette was " the observed of all observers," and no 
festive occasion could be complete without his presence. 
A procession was formed to the cathedral, in the midst 
of which walked the gallant conqueror, ladies dressed 
in white strewing his path with flowers. Te Deum was 
chanted, and a solemn thanksgiving offered to Divine 
Providence. 

Treason and disaffection still lingered in the city ; 

* Alison's History of Europe, chap. Ixxvi. 



FINED BY JUDGE HALL, 287 

and anonymous articles appeared in one of the public 
journals, designed to excite mutiny and sedition among 
the American troops. These were traced to one Lou- 
ail) er, a member of the state legislature, whom General 
Jackson instantly ordered to be arrested. A writ of 
habeas corpus was shortly after issued by Judge Hall, 
the district judge, for the purpose of procuring the re- 
lease of the prisoner. The order proclaiming martial 
law was still in force, and the judge was promptly or- 
dered into confinement. Two days later, intelligence 
was received of the conclusion of the treaty of peace. 
On being restored to his authority, Judge Hall sum- 
moned General Jackson before him. The latter readily 
obeyed the summons, and appeared with his counsel. 
The judge, whose only title to immortality is this one 
act of injustice, refused to hear either reason or argu- 
ment, and, to satisfy his offended dignity, imposed a 
fine of one thousand dollars on the general, for disre- 
garding the writ of habeas corpus. A spontaneous 
burst of indignation at once rose from the spectators, 
but General Jackson magnanimously interposed to 
shield the trembling judge from outrage. The fine was 
paid, and when he left the court room the multitude 
followed him in crowds. In a few moments, he was 
waited on by a committee of ladies, who had already 
raised the amount of the fins among the citizens of 
New Orleans, and now entreated him to accept it. He 
refused to take the money, and, at his suggestion, it 
was distributed among the widows and orphans of those 
who had fallen in defence of the city. After the lapse 
of many years, at the session of Congress in the winter 
of 1843-4, tardy, though merited justice, was done to 



288 ANDREW JACKSON. 

General Jackson, by the passage of a bill directing the 
amount of the fine to be refunded to him, with interest. 

General Jackson remained in command at New 
Orleans, until the month of March, when he was re- 
lieved by General Gaines. He immediately retired to 
the tranquillity of the Hermitage, though compelled to 
witness, everywhere on his homeward route, the eviden- 
ces of the respect and gratitude which thrilled the hearts 
of his countrymen. The war with the Seminole In- 
dians on the southern frontiers of Georgia as^ain called 
him from his retirement, in the winter of 1818.* Shortly 
after the breaking out of hostilities, he was ordered to 
assume the command of the forces operating in that 
quarter. On the ninth of March, 1818, he joined Gen- 
eral Gaines at Fort Scott, with nine hundred Georgia 
militia. Early in April, lie was reinforced by one 
thousand volunteers from West Tennessee, and iifteen 
hundred friendly Creek warriors, under their chief, 
Mcintosh. 

General Jackson now found himself at the head of 
four thousand five hundred men, with whom he marched 
to the Indian town of Mickasauky, which he laid waste. 
The hostile savages fled into Florida, whither he fol- 
lov/ed them, and took refuge in the neighborhood of St. 
Marks, the Spanish authorities of which endeavored to 
protect and shelter them. Accordingly, the American 
commander took possession of tlie town, and sent the 
garrison to Pensacola. On the sixteenth of April, he 
destroyed the Suwanee villages, and then returned to 
St. Marks, where two of the principal instigators of the 
Indian outrages, whom he had captured, a Scotchman 

♦ See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 



THE SEMINOLE WAR. 289 

and an Englishman, whose names were Arbuthnot and 
Ambrister, were tried by a court martial, sentenced to 
death, and executed. Not long after, intelligence was 
received that the governor of West Florida, at Pensa- 
cola, in violation of the treaty with Spain, was affording 
countenance and protection to the fugitive Seminoles. 
General Jackson proceeded thither without delay, seized 
Pensacola, on the twenty-fourth of May, and on the 
twenty-seventh Fort Barrancas surrendered to his au- 
thority. St. Augustine was also captured by a detach- 
ment under General Gaines. The seizure and occu- 
pation, by the American troops, of these places of refuge 
for the hostile Indians put an end to the outbreak, and 
in the month of June, General Jackson, whose health 
had become seriously impaired by the unfriendliness of 
the clLiuate, returned home, and subsequently resigned 
his commission. 

The Spanish posts in Florida seized by General Jack- 
son were afterwards ordered to be restored, but his con- 
duct was approved by President Monroe, and a resolu- 
tion of censure, offered in the House of Representatives, 
was voted down by a large majority. Any difticulty 
with Spain that might have grown out of his proceed- 
ings was obviated, by the cession of Florida to the 
United States, in the winter of 1819. General Jack- 
son was very appropriately selected by the American 
Executive, as the commissioner to receive the territory, 
and on the first of July, 1821, he issued a proclamation 
at Pensacola, officially announcing its annexation to the 
United States. His administration of the executive 
affairs of the new territory, owing to the bad state of 
his health, was quite brief ; during it, however, he came 



290 ANDREW JACKSON. 

in collision with the Spanish ex-gcvernor, in an effort, 
which proved successful, to protect the rights of several 
orphan females. His firm and unyielding will, and his 
determined purpose, were never exhibited in a more 
characteristic, or more creditable manner. His health 
continuing to grow worse, he transferred the authority 
with which he had been clothed, to his secretaries, on 
the seventh of October, 1821, and immediately set out 
for Nashville. 

The gallant soldier was not forgotton. Li August, 
1822, he was nominated for the presidency as the suc- 
cessor of Mr. INIonroe, by the legislature of Tennessee. 
In 1823 he declined the appointment of minister to 
Mexico, tendered to him by the President, and, in the 
same year, he was elected to the Senate of the United 
States. On becoming a prominent candidate for the 
presidential office, he resigned Ills seat. At the election 
in 1824, he received a plurality of the electoral votes, 
but as there was no choice by the colleges, the question 
was referred to the House of Representatives, by whom 
his principal competitor, John Quincy Adams, was 
elected to the office. In 1828, he was again a candi- 
date, and received one hundred and seventy-eight of 
the two hundi'ed and sixty-one electoral votes. In 
1832 he was elected for a second term, by a still larger 
majority. 

It is not within the scope of this work, to notice in 
detail the political services of General Jackson. A brief 
recapitulation of some of the. most important acts of his 
administration must suffice. On the twentieth of May, 
1830, he vetoed the Maysville road bill, and on the 
tenth of July, 1832, the bill to recharter the ITnited 



PINAL TERMINATION OF HIS PUBLIC CAREER. 291 

States Bank. On the sixteenth of January, 1S33, his 
celebrated nullification message, recapitulating the 
facts, and many of the arguments, contained in his 
proclamation of December previous, was issued. In 
October, 1833, the public deposits were removed from 
the United States Bank. On the fifteenth of April, 
1834, he protested against the resolutions of censure 
adopted by the Senate, wliich were afterwards, in Jan- 
uary, 1837, expunged from their journal ; and on the 
fifteenth of January, 1835, his warlike, but patriotic 
message, in regard to the refusal of the French govern- 
ment to pay the stipulated indemnity, made its appear- 
ance. 

His long public career finally terminated on the third 
of March, 1837, when he issued a farewell address to 
the people of the United States, and retired forever from 
the harassing cares and responsibilities of an official 
position, to the peaceful shades of his own quiet Her- 
mitage. The wife whom he had so ardently loved, no 
longer lived to bless him with her affection, and cheer 
him with her smiles ; — she had been taken from his 
side, by death, in December, 1828, — yet her memory 
was ever a sweet solace throughout the closing hours 
of his earthly pilgrimage. 

General Jackson had gained a world-wide reputation 
by the bravery and skill displayed in his Indian cam- 
paigns, and in the war with Great Britain. Lafayette 
was a guest at the Hermitage, on his visit to this country 
in 1825, and, twenty years later, the portrait of the 
general was painted, when almost in a dying condition, 
to adorn the gallery of Louis Philippe, the King of the 
French. He was known and honored by the great and 



292 ANDREW JACKSON. 

good in every land. Whatever may be said of the do- 
mestic policy of his administration, in his intercourse 
with foreign nations he inspired or enforced respect, and 
few, perhaps none, of our presidents, Washington alone 
excepted, ever commanded greater consideration abroad. 
A peaceful close was vouchsafed to the stormy and 
eventful life, the prominent incidents of which have 
been briefly portrayed in this sketch. The Imperial 
prisoner of St. Helena died amid a raging storm, shout- 
ing, in imagination, to his marshalled legions, while the 
winds howled and shrieked above his head ; the words, 
Tete (f armee ! were the last to leave his lips, as his 
eye glazed in death, and his frame was convulsed with 
the last agony. At the close of a Sabbath afternoon, 
in the bright summer time, when Nature had spread 
her richest garniture over her wide domains, and grove 
and forest were vocal with sweetest melody ; in the 
presence of his family and friends ; by his own fireside ; 
on the eighth of June, 1845 ; Andrew Jackson calmly 
yielded up his spirit. For weeks and months he had 
suffered under a painful disease, yet not a murmur es- 
caped him. His heart was stayed on a noble hope — a 
hope sure, steadfast, and unfading — the priceless hope 
of the Christian ! 

" Serene, serene, 
He pressed the crumbling verge of this terrestrial scene, 
Breathed soft, in childlike trust, 

The parting groan ; 
Gave back to dust its dust, — 

To Heaven its own !" 

In person General Jackson was tall and thin. His 
frame was well knit, but gaunt. He had an iron vis- 



HIS CHARACTER. 293 

age, and a commanding look. His eyes were a deep 
blue, bright and penetrating. He was frank and easy 
in his manners, courteous and affable in his address. 

His character was decidedly pronounced. It was 
full of salient points, remarkable for their strength, and 
the fitness and harmony of their combination. He was 
kind and affectionate, benevolent and humane ; pure 
and earnest of purpose ; inflexibly honest ; physically 
and morally brave ; ardent and sincere in his patriot- 
ism ; direct in his professions ; and resolute and un- 
Hinching in determination. He possessed a firm will, 
was clear in judgment, and rapid in his decisions. His 
temperament was restless, though not mercurial. He 
had an abundance of what the French call fortes 
emotions. His passions were intense, and what he 
did, he did with all his might. Like Cicero, he was a 
ticio man ; and, by his own unaided exertions, raised 
himself from comparative obscurity, to the highest dis- 
tinction. He was a good hater, but he never forgot his 
friends ; and there are many who still prize his friend- 
ship, bestowed while in life, as a favor from heaven.* 

All these traits and characteristics were strikingly 
exhibited, both in his civil, and military career. His 
style as a writer partook of his mental peculiarities ; 
it was rugged and uneven as the mountain torrent ; 
yet it had a nervous eloquence, that never failed to 
produce a deep impression, and indicated a powerful 
grasp of thought. As a soldier, he was fruitful in ex- 
pedients ; he had the genius, perseverance and skill, 
of Hannibal, — the indomitable will and energy, without 

* "L'amitie d'un grand homrae, est un bienfait desdieux."— FoZ^aire's 
Oedipe. 



fe 



294 ANDREW JACKSON. 

the selfishness, of Napoleon. He was persevering, cool, 
and intrepid, — hardy in endurance, and gifted with rare 
courage. In a word, as the historian remarks of the 
French soldier of fortune, — " He was not a great man 
because he was a great general : he was a great gen- 
eral because he was a great man "!* 

* Alison's History of Europe, chap. Ixx. 




^' "¥.'ftVft\C\\VT^'^°^* ' 



ALKXANDER MACOMB. 
Late General in Chief. 



ALEXANDER MACOMB. 



Alexander Macomb, late General-in-Chief of tho 
Army of the United States, was one of the first fruits 
of the military institution at West Point, suggested by 
General Washington, and established during the ad- 
ministration of President Jefferson. Like all the most 
prominent offieers in the army, at the close of the war 
of 1812, he was indebted, however, for his rapid pro- 
motion, to that " exfoliation of veteran commanders," 
which, says Mr. Ingersoll, in his Historical Sketch of 
the second war with Great Britain, "was one of the 
processes which the young army of that war had to 
sutler, before becoming fit for action."* 

He was born at Detroit, then a frontier garrison town, 
on the third day of April, 1782. His father, whose 
name was, also, Alexander Macomb, was of Irish pa- 
rentage, though a native of the city of New York ; 
he was highly esteemed as a citizen, and subsequently 
became a member of the New York'^ legislature ; and it 
is said, to his honor, that he furnished five sons for the 
regular army and the militia, in the war of 1812. The 
elder Macomb removed to Detroit, just previous to^the 
American Revolution, and engaged in the fur trade, in 

* Vol. I. p. -288. 



298 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

of his superior officers. With the permission of General 
Hamilton, he visited Canada, to make himself acquainted 
with the discipline and tactics in the British service ; he 
was kindly received by the officers at Montreal, visited 
the troops in their quarters, and was present at several 
reviews for manoeuvre and inspection. 

The American army was now reduced to a peace es- 
tablishment ; a great portion of the troops were dis- 
banded; and most of the officers returned to private 
life. Macomb, however, was retained in the service, 
and on the tenth of February, 1801, was appointed a 
second lieutenant of dragoons. Upon his return to the 
United States, he was ordered to Philadelphia, on the 
recruiting service. While in this city, he eagerly em- 
braced every opportunity to cultivate and improve his 
mental abilities, by reading, and associating with learned 
and scientific men. The valuable public libraries were 
open to him, and he became a constant visitor. He 
here met with a French officer of engineers, under 
whom he passed through a course of instruction in for- 
tification and military topography. He likewise formed 
the acquaintance of Major Williams, of the 2d artillery, 
the Inspector of Fortifications, an able and intelligent 
officer, who was afterwards placed at the head of the 
corps of engineers, and the Military Academy at West 
Point. 

Having raised a body of recruits, he received orders 
to conduct them to Pittsburg, the headquarters of Gen- 
eral Wilkinson. Being accompanied by a number of 
subaltern officers of infantry, he cheerfully waived his 
privilege of being mounted, and walked with them on 
foot, enlivening tlie weary march by his sprightly con- 



API'OIATKX) A LIKLTKiNAM" OF ENGINEERS. 299 

versatioii, his gay good humor, and his friendly attention 
to the wants of those under his command. 

Arrived at Pittsburg, Lieutenant Macomb was em- 
ployed in instructing the recruits preparatory to joining 
their respective regiments. He also renewed his inti- 
macy with Major Williams, then on a tour of inspection 
upon the Niagara frontier, whom he assisted in preparing 
his drawings, calculations, and estimates. He was 
subsequently attached to the military family of Gen- 
eral Wilkinson," as an extra aid-de-camp, and accom- 
panied him, in that capacity, to the camp of instruction 
formed at Wilkinsonville, at the mouth of the Ohio, for 
practicing the evolutions of the line. In August, 1801, 
he was selected as the secretary of the commission, 
consLstinj? of Generals Wilkinson and Pickens, and 
Colonel Hawkins, appointed to treat with the Indian 
tribes inhabiting the Southwestern territory. He was 
eno^aofed in this service, and in other collateral duties, 
until June, 1802 — spending the winter of 1801-2 in 
the Creek nation — when he was dispatched to Wash- 
ington by the commissioners, with the treaties and ac- 
counts. During all this time, he kept a journal, in 
which he carefully noted the geological and geographical 
features of the country which he traversed ; and he also 
constructed a topographical map of the Temiessee and 
Mississippi rivers, which was deposited in the War 
office, and noticed by President Jefferson in the most 
commendatory terms. 

Uj5on his arrival at the seat of government, he found 
that the corps to which he belonged had been disbanded, 
but that he had been retained, and attached to the 1st 
infantry, with the rank of first lieutenant. At the same 



300 ALEXANDER MACO.AIB. 

time authority had been given to raise a corps of en- 
gineers, to consist of one major, two captains, two first, 
and two second lieutenants, and ten cadets — which 
corps, when organized, was to constitute the Military 
Academy. Being dissatisfied with his new appointment, 
he remonstrated with the Secretary of War ; Major 
Williams, the head of the corps of engineers, seconded 
his appeal ; and, in consequence, he was transferred to 
that corps, as a first lieutenant, in October, 1802. 

He now proceeded to West Point, to take his place 
as a student, — the lieutenants, as well as the cadets, 
being obliged to go through the course of study, — in 
conformity with the provisions of the law organizing 
the Academy. He was one of the first graduates, and 
was then appointed adjutant of the corps. It was his 
duty to instruct the cadets in their military exercises, 
and he was the first officer who ors^anized them into a 
body, and put arras in their hands. — This was the be- 
ginning of an institution, which has since made the 
world ring, with the heroism and daring of the gallant 
officers whose military character and education were 
there formed and acquired. 

In July, 1803, Lieutenant Macomb was married to 
liis cousin, Catharine Macomb, a young lady of rare 
beauty, of refined mind, and highly-polished man- 
ners. 

So highly were his talents appreciated, that in the 
autumn of the same year, he was appointed Judge Ad- 
vocate of a general court-martial held at Frederick, 
Maryland, for the trial of Colonel Butler. In discharg- 
ing this duty he acquitted himself with such marked 
ability, that the members of the court suggested to him 



MADE LIEUTENANT COLONEL. 301 

the preparation of a treatise on the subject of courts- 
martial, — a work which ho afterwards executed. 

On the eleventh of June, 1805, in pursuance of the 
strong recommendation of Colonel Williams, who was 
ever warmly attached to his protege, he was further 
promoted to the rank of captain in the corps of engineers ; 
and, immediately thereafter^ was ordered to Portsmouth, 
to oversee the repairs on the fortifications in that har- 
bor. The next year he was appointed superintendent 
of the public works, then erecting at Mount Dearborn, 
on the Catawba river, thirty-six miles above Camden, 
where it was designed to establish a national armory 
and depot. While at this place, he prepared his trea- 
tise on courts-martial, — receiving the benefit of the 
advice and suggestions of C4eneral William R. Davie, 
and General Charles C. Pinckney, both equally accora- 
])lished as soldiers and civilians. The work was soon 
after printed, and submitted to the President and Sec- 
retary of War, by whom it was adopted as the standard 
for the government of courts-martial. 

Captain Macomb remained at Mount Dearborn, until 

1807, when he was instructed to take the general di- 
rection, as chief engineer, of the works then in pro- 
cess of construction for the defence of Georgia and the 
two Carolinas. He made a careful reconnaissance of 
the whole coast, from Ocracock inlet to the river St. 
Mary's, and projected a complete system of defences 
for all the principal harbors and inlets. In February, 

1808, he was raised to the rank of major, and, in 1811, 
was made a lieutenant colonel. He remained at 
Charleston, and in its neighborhood, superintending 
the fortifications on the coast, till the month of April, 



302 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

1812, when ho was called to Washington, to assist the 
Secretary of War in organizing, arranging, equipping, 
and providing supplies, for the new regiments ordered 
to be raised, in anticipation of a collision with England. 

War was declared in June following, and Colonel 
jVIacomb promptly solicited a command in the line of 
the army. Much to his chagrin this was refused, as 
beini? incompatible with the existing rules of the ser- 
vice.* Still he was not to be balked in his determina- 
tion to take a far more active part in the approaching 
contest, than as a mere cabinet and staff officer. He 
now applied for an appointment in one of the new reg- 
iments of artillery ; the delegation in Congress from 
the State of New York endorsed his application ; and, 
on the sixth of July, 1812, he received a commission 
as colonel of the 3rd artillery, a double regiment, to 
consist of twenty companies, of one hundred and eigh- 
teen men each. 

Colonel ivlacomb forthwith repaired to New York, 
and by his own personal efforts and exertions, soon suc- 
ceeded in raising the requisite number of men to com- 
pose his regiment. The diflerent companies rendez- 
voused at Greenbush, where they were completely 
organized and instructed. Their fine state of disci- 
j)linc, their soldierly appearance and deportment, and 
ihe high character of their ofhoers for ability and in- 
telligence, attracted general attention, and elicited 
tokens of approbation in every quarter. In November, 
the colonel marched his regiment to Sacketts Harbor, 

* Colonel Williams, the chief of the corps of Engineers, resigned Lis 
commission in 1812, for the reason that he was denied a command in the 
line of the army, which he solicited. 



STATIONED AT SACKETTS IIARCOR. 303 

with the intention of embarking it on board the fleet, 
and making an attack on Kingston. On his arrival at 
that post, he found that Commodore Cliauncey had 
sailed in quest of the enemy, whereupon, in accordance 
with the advice of a council of war, the contemplated 
movement was abandoned, and the regiment went into 
winter quarters. 

During the winter. Colonel INIacomb was invested 
with the command of the land forces at Sacketts Har- 
bor. In addition to his own regiment, there was a 
large body of militia and volunteers stationed there, to- 
gether with a number of sailors and marines belonsfins: 
to the squadron. All the troops were drilled with great 
regularity and precision — being often paraded on the 
frozen lake, to inure them to the cold, and to fit them 
for a projected march, across the ice, upon Kingston. 
This was ascertained to be practicable, by a reconnais- 
sance made by Captain Crane, and in order to cover 
the design, a rumor was set afloat, to the effect that 
Sir George Prevost was concentrating his forces at 
Kingston for an attack on Sacketts Harbor.* By some 
means or other, the rumor reached the ears of General 
Dearborn, the commander-in-chief, at Albany, in such 
a shape, that he could not be induced to believe it was 
a mere device designed to lull the suspicions of the en- 
emy. He left Albany in a sleigh drawn by four horses, 
reached Sacketts Harbor in forty-eight hours, and soon 
after ordered up the brigades of Chandler and Pike from 
Plattsburg. 

* The post was attacked in May, 1813, (see Memoir of General Brown, 
ante,) but not until after the withdrawal of the troops for the expedition 
against York and Fort George. 



304 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

Kingston, therefore, remained unmolested, — and the 
army at Sacketts Harbor continued inactive, till the 
opening of the lake navigation in the spring of 1813, 
when General Dearborn proceeded against York with 
the greater part of his forces. A portion of Colonel 
IMacomb's regiment took part in the expedition, but 
their commander himself, much against his own inclina- 
tion and wishes, was left at Sacketts Harbor, — it being 
deemed of the highest importance that an officer of skill 
and ability should be placed in command of that post. 

Having made every possible preparation for the de- 
fence of Sacketts Harbor, and received permission to 
join General Dearborn on the Niagara frontier. Colonel 
Macomb sailed up the lake, in company with Com- 
modore Chauncey, with the remainder of his regiment, 
and joined the main army on the twenty-fourth of May ; 
passing, in the night, a schooner dispatched by the 
gcneral-in-chief, with an otficer on board, bearing pos- 
itive orders for him to remain at the post he had left. 
The arrangements for the attack on Fort George had 
previously been made ; but a sort of second reserve was 
formed, under Colonel Macomb, consisting of his regi- 
ment and the marines. The attack was made on the 
twenty-seventh of May, and was eminently successful. 
None of the troops participated in the action, except 
the advanced guard under Colonel Scott, and the bri- 
gade of General Boyd ; consequently. Colonel Ma- 
comb had no opportunity to gather the laurels he 
longed to win ; and, immediately after the battle took 
place, he was ordered to return to Sacketts Harbor, 
with four companies of his regiment. 

Upon what tri/ling, and apparently unimportant cir- 



EXPEDITION DOWN THE ST. LAWRENCE. 305 

cumstances, does the destiny of individuals, like that 
of nations, depend ! — The temporary absence of Col- 
onel Macomb from Sacketts Harbor enabled General 
Brown, then only an officer of the militia, to distin- 
guish himself, and to obtain a high command, followed 
by rapid promotion, in the regular service ; while the 
former, though equally brave and patriotic, was de- 
feated in his most ardent hopes, by his impatience and 
anxiety to meet the enemy in the field. 

In the summer of 1813, General Wilkinson relieved 
General Dearborn in the command of the Northern 
army. Colonel Macomb accompanied him in the fruit- 
less and unfortunate movement down the St. Law- 
rence, in the autumn of that year.* He was placed 
at the head of the corps cT elite, which consisted of his 
own regiment, the 20th infantry, Forsyth's rifles, and 
Major Herkimer's New York volunteers, numbering, in 
all, about twelve hundred- men. On the march over 
land, to avoid the fire of the British batteries at Pres- 
cott, he led the advance ; and when the army resumed 
its progress down the river, he was detached with his 
corps, to remove obstructions from the stream, and 
drive the enemy's skirmishers and light troops from the 
line of the route. While on this service, several slight 
affairs occurred with the enemy, in which he and the 
officers and men of his command, displayed commend- 
able zeal and gallantry. 

Beino- in the advance. Colonel Macomb had no part 
in the action fought on the eleventh of November, near 
Williamsburg. After the death of General Coving- 
ton, who fell on that occasion, Macomb succeeded to 

* See Memoir of General Brown, ante. 



306 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

the command of his brigade, and conducted it to the 
winter quarters of the army, at French Mills, where 
he was placed in command of the artillery. 

On the twenty-fourth of January, 1814, Colonel 
Macomb was promoted to the ranlc of brigadier general, 
and, on the receipt of his commission, was regularly 
assigned to the command of Covington's brigade. In 
conformity with orders from the War Department, the 
cantonment at French Mills was broken up in Feb- 
ruary, 1814, and the troops divided into two columns, — 
one moving to Sacketts Harbor, under General Brown, 
and the other proceeding to Plattsburg and Burlington, 
under Generals Wilkinson and Macomb. The latter 
was appointed to the command of the troops on the 
eastern shore of Lake Champlain, and established his 
headquarters at Burlington. 

In the month of March following, General Wilkin- 
son concentrated his forces at Champlain, on the New 
York frontier, in order to make a demonstration, or at- 
tack, as might be most practicable, upon the British- 
outposts. General Macomb joined him with his bri- 
gade, and proceeded, with the. column, to La Cole Mill, 
on the St. John's, a strongly fortified position of the 
enemy. An attempt was made to carry the work on 
the thirtieth of March, which wholly failed of success. 
General Macomb, who had opposed, to the last, the 
order of attack laid down by the commanding general, 
and suggested an entirely different plan of operations, 
commanded the reserve, and displayed his usual ability 
in covcrinij the retrosfrade march to Odletown. 

Shortly after this affair. General Wilkinson was re- 
called, and General Macomb assumed the command of 



INVASION OF NEW YORK. 307 

the army, till the arrival of General IzarJ. Commodore 
Macdonough was then actively engaged in constructing 
and equipping his fleet, at Vergennes. Early in May, 
the enemy's flotilla appeared ofl:' Plattsburg, on their 
way towards the naval depot, intending, doubtless, to 
destroy the vessels and stores. General Macomb in- 
stantly penetrated their design, and dispatched the light 
artillery under Captain Thornton, to man the batteries 
which he had caused to be erected on Otter Creek, to 
protect the depot. The British flotilla attempted to 
pass up the creek, but were so roughly handled by the 
American batteries, that they judged it expedient to 
return to the Isle Aux Noix. 

"When General Izard arrived at Plattsburg and took 
the command. General Macomb resumed his position 
at Burlington, till the departure of the former, on the 
twenty-seventh of August, 1814, with the greater part 
of his troops, to reinforce General Brown on the Ni- 
agara frontier. 

Meanwhile, the British force in the Canadas had 
been largely augmented, by the arrival of successive 
detachments from Wellington's victorious army on the 
Garonne. At the close of the month of August, there 
were, at least, sixteen thousand regular soldiers, under 
the orders of the governor-general. Sir George Prevost, 
— twelve thousand of whom were in the lower province. 
This formidable force was designed for the invasion of 
the United States, by the way of Lake Champlain, in 
conjunction with the fleet then preparing to cooperate 
with it, under Commodore Downie. At the same time, 
a strong naval expedition, under Sir John Sherbrooke 
and Admiral Griflith, was moving along the New 



308 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

England coast, landing at different places on their 
route, and encountering but a feeble opposition, except 
on the part of the regular troops or the navy. These 
two movements were parts of a general plan, formed by 
the Prince Regent and his cabinet — based, in all proba- 
bility, on the well-known disaffection in the New Eng- 
land States. But Sir George Prevost found, to his 
cost, that the want of patriotism manifested in Massa- 
chusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, was not 
shared, to any considerable degree, by the yeomen of 
New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York. 

The preparations of the English commander for the 
projected invasion were nearly completed, when Gen- 
eral Izard set out for the theatre of General Brown's 
operations. General Macomb, whose brigade was now 
broken up, was left in command at Plattsburg, to which 
he again removed his headquarters. His whole force 
numbered about twenty-five hundred men, most of 
whom, however, were convalescents, or new recruits 
belonging to different regiments ; there was but one 
organized battalion in the entire command ; many were 
sick ; and, on examination, it was found that there 
were only fifteen hundred fit for duty. This was, in- 
deed, a dilemma ; and especially so, as there was no 
time given to bring up new regular troops, — it being 
announced, on the first of September, that the advance 
of Sir George Prevost's army had that day crossed the 
lines at Odletown, where he was issuing his proclama- 
tions inviting the inhabitants to remain neutral, and 
impressing wagons and teams — thus plainly indicating 
his intention to sweep down the western shore of the 
lake, in the direction of Plattsburg. 



DEFENCES OF PLATTSBURG. 



309 



General Macomb never paused to count the number 
of his enemies, or to consider his own weakness, any- 
further tlian was necessary for the defence of his posi- 
tion, which he was determined to maintain at all haz- 
ards. General JNIooers, of the New York militia, was 
invited to consult with him, and to cooperate in the 
obstruction of the enemy's advance, with all the troops 
under his orders. Messengers sped ofl" in every direc- 
tion, bearing spirited appeals from General Macomb, to 
arouse the people of Vermont and New York ; and 
every exertion was made, in the meantime, to reduce 
the confusion prevailing at Plattsburg into something 
like order, and to strengthen the fortifications prepared 
to resist the " rushing onslaught" of the British legions. 
A spirit of emulation was carefully fostered among the 
officers and men, who were divided into detachments, 
and placed near the different forts'; General Macomb 
announcing, in orders, that each party must be the 
garrison of its own work, and defend it to the last ex- 
tremity. 

The village of Plattsburg is situated on the north- 
western bank of the Seiranac river, which flows into 
Cumberland bay, an arm of Lake Champlain. On the 
south-east, between the river and the bay, there is a 
triangular peninsula, from four to six hundred yards 
wide. The American works were constructed, under 
the direction of Major Totten, of the engineers, on this 
peninsula. There were, at first, three redoubts, and 
two strong blockhouses. The principal work, called, by 
General Izard, Fort Moreau, stood in the centre, — 
having on its right, on the Saranac, Fort Brown, and 
on its left, resting on the lake, Fort Scott ; so named 



810 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

by General Macomb, in honor of his gallant brothers in 
arms. Fort Brown and Fort Scott were deemed in- 
accessible, on their water fronts, as the banks of the 
river and bay were high and precipitous. On all the 
other sides, the several works were surrounded by deep 
and wide ditches ; they were defended by capomiieres ; 
and each glacis was covered with rows of abattis. The 
blockhouses occiipied favorable positions for guarding 
the river, and the ravines on the northern bank leading 
to the redoubts. The general afterwards constructed a 
fourth redoubt, which he called Fort Gaines, in advance 
of the other forts, on the south side of the river. 

All the works occupied by the American troops were 
well supplied with artillery, and their position was fur- . 
ther strengthened, by the presence of the fleet under 
Commodore Macdonough, which lay moored in the bay 
on the right of their position. Besides the regular gar- 
risons detailed for the different redoubts, General Ma- 
comb formed four small corps of observation, — placing 
two hundred and fifty men under INIajnr Wool, of 
the 29th infantry ; two hundred under Major Sproul, 
of the loth ; one hundred rifles under Captain Gros- 
venor, of the 26th ; and one hundred and ten rifles 
under Lieutenant Colonel Appling. These corps were 
thrown forward on the diflerent routes, to watch the 
movements of the enemy. Most of the citizens of 
Plattsburg had fled with their families and effects, but 
a small party of young men remained behind, received 
rifles, and organized themselves into a separate com- 
pany. They also did good service as skirmishers. 

The advance of Sir George Prevost was slow and cau- 
tious. The example and fate of Burgoyne were before 



ADVANCE OP SIR GEORGE PREVOST. 311 

him, and he desired to profit by the lesson. He wished 
to penetrate into the country as far as Crown Point and 
Ticonderoga, before the winter set in, but he did not 
care to be caught in a trap. He therefore felt his way 
at every step, repeatedly urging Captain Downie, how"- 
ever, to hasten the completion and equipment of his 
fleet. Without the command of the lake he naturally 
felt that his position, far advanced into the enemy's 
country, would be extremely hazardous and insecure. 
On the third of September, the whole British army 
entered the town of Champlain, and on the following 
day moved forward upon Plattsburg. They found the 
roads blocked up with felled trees, the passes obstructed 
by chevaux-de-frise and abattis, and the bridges broken 
down, — the corps of observation pushed out by General 
■Macomb having faithfully obeyed his orders, to impede, 
in every way, the progress of the enemy's troops. 

Tlie eloquent appeals of the American general to the 
yeomanry of Vermont and New^York were nobly an- 
swered. Hundreds and thousands of the brave Green 
Mountain boys, and the patriotic militia and volunteers 
of New York, daily poured into his camp. Those who 
were destitute he furnished with arms, and all were 
supplied with provisions. The militia were, of course, 
organized and enrolled under their respective com- 
manders, but the volunteers, at his suggestion, usually 
separated into small parties, to lie in wait in the woods, 
to fall upon detached parties of the enemy, to annoy 
their flanks, to harrass them by every possible means, 
and to obtain information and intercept stragglers. 

On the fourth of September, General Mooers, with 
feeven hundred militia, advanced about seven miles on 



312 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

the Beekmantown road, — which passes over the swell- 
ing uplands overlooking the lake, and the lower, or lake 
road, on its margin, — to reconnoitre, and obstruct the 
approaches. Captain Sproul was then at Dead Creek 
bridge, on the lake road, with his corps and twx). pieces 
of artillery ; while Lieutenant Colonel Appling and his 
rifles, who had been stationed on the Great Chazy, were 
still further in front. When the enemy moved forward, 
on the fourth instant, Appling retreated leisurely be- 
fore them, tearing up the bridges, cutting down trees 
and flinging them across the road, and throwing every 
possible obstruction in the way of their advance. 

Sir George Prevost halted his troops at Little Chazy, 
on the fifth instant, and it was the same day ascertained 
by General Macomb, that they would take up the line 
of march on the following morning, in two columns, 
on the Beekmantown and lake roads, which divided 
below Chazy village. The general was urged by many 
warm and zealous friends, to abandon Plattsburg to its 
fate, to remove the stores while there was yet time, and 
to retire higher up the lake. He was not the man to 
follow such advice ; though a retreat, under the cir- 
cumstances, could not justly have been termed dishon- 
orable. He had already decided to dispute every inch 
of ground, and he felt confident, that if the narrow 
peninsula, between the Saranac and the Champlain, 
should, indeed, prove the Thermopyloe of himself and 
his gallant little band of regular soldiers, the sacrifice 
would not be in vain. The militia and volunteers who 
had flocked around his standard, or were operating in 
the neighborhood, numbered from eight to ten thousand 
men, and before the enemy could have improved any 



BATTLE OF PLATTSBURO. 313 

advantage gained over his command, the forests around 
them would have been filled with an overwhelmins: force 
of citizen soldiers, burning with impatience to drive 
back the invader. 

In the evening of the fifth instant, INIajor Wool was 
ordered forward with his corps, to support the militia 
on the Beekmantown road. It was desisfned to rein- 
force him with two pieces of artillery, before daylight ; 
but the officer having charge of the guns did not join 
him in season At early dawn on the sixth, the enemy 
were in motion. The column on the Beekmantown 
road, consisting of the divisions of Generals Power and 
Robinson, pushed forward with great rapidit3^ JMajor 
Wool and his men withstood them for some time with 
matchless hardihood and bravery, killing Lieutenant 
Colonel Wellington, of the Buffs, the leader of the ad- 
vanced parties ; but the militia were seized with an 
unhappy panic, occasioned, in part, by the red coats of 
the New York cavalry, stationed as look-outs on the 
hills, whom they mistook for the British soldiers. The 
firmness and intrepidity of INIajor Wool and his com- 
mand failed to encourage them, and their premature 
flight soon compelled him to retire. 

The right column of the enemy having approached 
within one mile of Plattsburg, General Macomb dis- 
patched his aid, with orders to Captain Sproul, to fall 
back by the lake road ; and to Lieutenant Colonel Ap- 
pling, to attack the British right. Appling retired just 
in time to escape being cut off; as he soon after en- 
countered the head of a detachment from the left col- 
umn, which had made a detour through the woods for 
that purpose. A destructive fire from his rifles, at rest, 

14 



314 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

checked their advance, and enabled him to effect his re- 
treat in safety. The different corps, under Appling, 
Wool, and Spronl, now united, and slowly continued 
their retrograde movement ; the field pieces were kept 
actively playing ; the gunboats lying off the mouth of 
Dead Creek, poured a lively and galling fire upon the 
enemy ; and their advanced parties, were severely 
handled. 

Every road and lane leading into Plattsburg was 
now full of British soldiers. The artillery, which had 
supported the American advanced corps, was pushed 
across the bridge in the town, where it was placed in 
battery, to cover the retreat of the infantry, who re- 
tired in alternate detachments. As the last platoons 
reached the southern bank of the river, the planks of 
all tire bridges spanning the stream were torn up, by 
order of General Macomb, and breastworks formed from 
them, to protect the parties left to guard the crossings. 
The enemy promptly entered the town, flattering them- 
selves that the victory was more than half completed. 
The heavy artillery in the redoubts immediately opened 
on them, and the staff officers, who ascended the roofs 
and balconies to reconnoitre, were speedily dislodged by 
the hot shot, poured upon them "like burning lava," 
while the buildings of Vvdiieh they had taken possession 
were set on fire. The British commander, discovering, 
that his men were sufTering considerably from the fn*e 
of the heavy metal, and not being prepared to force the 
passage of the river, drew off the main body of his 
army, — leaving only a few light troops to skirmish at 
tlic dillrrent fords and bridges, — and encamped in a 
semicircle, about two miles from the American forts. 



SKIRMISHING. 315 

It was of the highest importtince that the weakness of 
his army should be concealed from the enemy, and 
General Macomb took extraordinary precautions to 
prevent their obtaining any positive information, and 
to deceive them in regard to his real strength. All the 
troops were paraded at guard-mounting; and, as sev- 
eral days elapsed before anything of moment transpired 
on either side, a portion of the barracks constructed for 
General Izard's army was burned every night, to pre- 
vent the enemy from approaching the works unobserved, 
and to march the troops through the light, as if they 
were reinforcements just arriving from the opposite 
shore of the lake. 

From the evening of the sixth of September, till the 
morning of the eleventh, Sir George Prevost was zeal- 
ously engaged in planting his batteries, both open and 
masked, and bringing up his heavy artillery. During 
all this time he refrained from offensive operations, 
though there were constant skirmishes between ad- 
vanced corps of the two armies, at the bridges and 
fords. The reason alleged for the delay on his part, 
was the want of his battering train, that came up 
very slowly ; but the absence of the fleet under Captain 
Downie, which had not yet arrived, — and without 
which, as appeared in the sequel, he dared not make 
an attempt on the American position, — was, probably, 
the main consideration that influenced him. 

In the meantime, a lively and effective cannonade was 
directed upon the enemy's lines from the American 
forts, — the sullen thunder of their artillery echoing for 
many a mile through the sweeping forests whose rich 
foliage enamelled the borders of liake Champlain. The 



316 ALEXANDER MACO.MB. 

repeated assaults of the enemy at the different cross- 
ings of the river were repelled with ease and alacrity ; 
and on one occasion, Captain M'Glassin, of the 15th 
infantry, gallantly crossed the river in the night, with 
fifty men ; attacked a working party one hundred and 
fifty strong, constructing a battery opposite Fort Brown ; 
defeated both them and their support, also one hundred 
and fifty in number, killing seven of the enemy ; and 
completely demolished the work. The regular troops, 
besides performing regular tours of duty at the bridge 
and fords, labored incessantly, in strengthening the for- 
tifications. 

On the night of the tenth of September, General 
Macomb was apprised of the intention of the enemy 
to make an attack the next day ; and, by his orders, 
the roads and passes leading to the south of his posi- 
tion, as he suspected they designed to turn it, were 
covered with felled trees, and strewed with leaves, so 
as to deceive them, and a new road was opened leading 
towards Salmon river. 

At the earliest dawn of day, before the welkin be- 
gan to glow with the purple light of morning, a gen- 
eral movement was reported, by the advanced parties, 
to be making in the enemy's camp ; and when objects 
could be distinguished from the main line, all their 
different corps were observed under arms. Shortly af- 
terwards, the British fleet rounded Cumberland head. 
As the Confiance, the flag ship of Captain Downie, en- 
tered the bay, she sealed her guns, — the signal agreed 
on with Sir George Prevost for the commencement of the 
action. A desperate conflict, of rather more than two 
imurs' duration, now took place between the rival 



REPULSE OF THE ENEMY. 317 

squadrons, at the termination of wliich Commodore 
Macdonough obtained a signal triumph over his oppo- 
nent, who fell mortally wounded in the action. 

Nearly all the. enemy's vessels were captured or de- 
stroyed, and their crews, with the exception of those 
who were killed during the engagement, were taken 
prisoners. 

Sir George Prevost only waited to give his men their 
breakfast, when the attack was ordered on the land. 
Showers of bombs, shrapnels, balls, and rockets, were 
hurled across the river ; and immediately after the bom- 
bardment commenced, the enemy advanced to force a 
passage across the stream, and assault the American 
works, in three columns — one approaching the bridge 
in the village, another the upper bridge, and the third 
a ford about three miles above the forts — all of which 
were provided with scaling ladders. The attack was 
vigorously met by the American artillerists ; fire an- 
swered fire ; and the ringing shot and shout resounded 
far and wide. 

The two columns of the enemy which attempted to 
pass the bridges, were gallantly driven back by the 
regulars ; the remaining column was led astray in tiic 
woods — the artifices of the American commander being 
entirely successful — and after spending a long time in 
marching and countermarching to no purpose, wearied 
and worn with fatigue, they arrived in sight of the 
American works, only to hear the glad shouts of vic- 
tory at the brilliant success of the brave Macdonough. 
A further advance was no longer to be thought of; the 
recall was sounded ; the scaling ladders were thrown 
down ; and a hastv retreat was made. The volunteers 



318 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

and militia stationed in this quarter, pressed warmly 
upon them, and succeeded in cutting off an entire com- 
pany of the 76th foot, not a single man of whom es- 
caped. The cannonade was kept up till sunset, when 
the enemy's batteries were all silenced by the effective 
fire from the American forts. 

Before another morning dawned, Sir George Prevost 
and his powerful army had all disappeared, like " the 
baseless fabric of a vision." Their sick and wounded 
were left behind, with a message to the American gen- 
eral commending them to his kindness and generosity. 
Vast quantities of provisions were also abandoned or de- 
stroyed, together with large stores of ammunition, tents, 
and intrenching tools. The retreat was made so unex- 
pectedly, and with such extraordinary precipitance, 
that it was not discovered till the enemy had nearly 
reached Chazy, about eight miles distant. The light 
troops, volunteers, and militia, were instantly detached 
in pursuit of the flying Britons ; but a violent storm of 
rain impeded their progress, and they were only able 
to capture a few prisoners, and to cover the escape of 
between three and four hundred deserters. Sir George 
Prevost succeeded in effecting his return to Canada, 
without further molestation, where he resigned the 
command of the army and demanded a court martial. 
Before the investigation took place, he died, as it is 
said, of grief and mortification at the ill-success of an 
expedition so well equipped and provided, and upon 
which depended so many hopes and expectations. 

The actual loss of the British army in this expedition 
was only two hundred and fifty killed and wounded, 
but there were over four hundred deserted in the re- 



RETURN OF PEACE. 319 

treat. Of the Americans, there were thirty-seven killed, 
sixty*t.wo wounded, and twenty missing. 

The double victory of INIacomb and JMacdonough was 
everywhere hailed by their countrymen with acclama- 
tions of joy. The legislatures of New York and Ver- 
mont were foremost in offering their thanks and con- 
gratulations. The freedom of the city of New York 
was presented to General Macomb, in a gold box, and 
the State legislature voted him a magnificent sword. 
Congress also passed a vote of thanks, and ordered that 
a gold medal, emblematical of the victory, should be 
struck and presented to him. The brevet of major gen- 
eral was likewise conferred on him — his commission 
bearing date on the memorable eleventh of Septem- 
ber, 1814. 

Upon the conclusion of the treaty of peace, the nego- 
tiations for which were undoubtedly hastened to a close 
by the disastrous result of the expedition under Sir 
George Prevost, the army was reduced to the peace 
establishment, which was fixed at ten thousand men. 
Two major generals, and four brigadier generals, were 
retained in the service ; among them was General Ma- 
comb, who stood at the head of the brigadiers. He 
was now assigned to the command of the 3rd military 
department, and established his headquarters at New 
York ; subsequently he was transferred to the 5th de- 
partment, and removed to Detroit. While in charge ' 
of the latter department, he established the posts at ■ 
Fort Gratiot, Chicago, Mackinaw, Prairie du Chien, ' 
St. Peter's, and St. Mary's. So highly was he esteemed 
by the people of Detroit, that when he was called to 
Washington, on the further reduction of the army, in 



320 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

June, 1821, to take charge of the Engineer Bureau, an 
address, in their name, with a piece of plate, wa^ pre- 
sented to him, by Governor Cass ; and the clergy, and 
all the most prominent citizens, called upon him to 
take their leave, and express their regret at his de- 
parture. 

General Macomb now removed to Georgetown, in 
the District of Columbia, in order to enter upon the 
duties of his ajipointment as Chief Engineer. His mil- 
itary studies, his talents and experience, eminently fitted 
him for this post ; and it is not strange, therefore, that 
he should have received, as he did, the repeated thanks 
of every head of the War Department, during his ad- 
ministration of the affairs of the engineer bureau. 
Millions of dollars were appropriated under his direc- 
tions, not a smgle cent of which was unaccounted for 
to the government. 

In the first year of his residence at Georgetown, 
General Macomb was called upon to mourn the loss of 
his excellent wife, who had so long shared with him 
the toils and dangers, the hardships and suflerings, of a 
soldier's life. He was married a second time, in May, 
1826, to Mrs. Harriet Balch Wilson, a lady richly 
meriting the praise awarded to the possessor of so many 
graces and accomplishments. 

On the death of General Brown, in February, 1828, 
General Macomb was raised to the full rank of major 
general, and appointed General-in-Chief of the army. 
His claims to tliis preference were disputed by Generals' 
Scott and Gaines, the two brigadiers ; but President 
Adams, and his successor, General Jackson, decided in 
favor of Macomb, on the ground tliat his military ser- 



HIS DEATH. 321 

vice was the longest, and that, even if this were not the 
case, the Executive possessed the unquestioned right to 
go beyond the pale of the army, if thought advisable, in 
making the selection. 

"While at the head of the army, General Macomb 
devised and recommended various plans for its improve- 
ment, and that of the military school at West Point, 
many of which were adopted by Congress, or the War 
Department, and all of which would no doubt materi- 
ally conduce to the elevation of the military character 
of the country. He was not again required to tai<e 
the field, except that he was absent for a few months 
in Florida, during the second Seminole war, and, in 
1839, concluded a treaty of peace with the refractory 
Indians, which proved to be illusory and deceptive. 

As General Macomb advanced in years, he grew 
somewhat corpulent, and became subject to apopletic 
attacks. On the occasion of the funeral ceremonies of 
President Harrison, in the city of Washington, he 
commanded the funeral escort ; and his tall and manly 
form, his noble and dignified presence, rendered him the 
most conspicuous personage in that brilliant pageant. 
But little more than two months elapsed, when he was 
struck by the same relentless enemy of our race. He 
died in a fit of apoplexy, on the twenty-fifth of June, 
1841, universally lamented by his associates and breth- 
ren in arms, and by his numerous friends and acquaint- 
ances throughout the Union. 

The personal appearance of General Macomb was 
decidedly in his favor. He was above the ordinary 
height, and, until a few years previous to his death, 
was finely proportioned. His eyes were blue, and 

14* 



322 ALEXANDER MACOMB. 

beamed with intelligence and kindness. His look was 
lofty and imposing, and his whole cast of countenance 
indicated great decision and firmness, coupled with in- 
tellectual ability of the highest order. 

He was polished and easy in his manners ; at all 
times accessible ; but never forgetting his own self-re- 
spect, or losing sight of the dignity of his position. In 
his military career, he evinced unusual promptness and 
energy, appropriately tempered by wisdom and pru- 
dence. He made no pretences to extraordinary cour- 
age ; but a braver soldier, in the better sense of the 
term, never lived. His scientific attainments in the 
line of his profession, and in general literature, were 
remarked, and admired, by all who had the pleasure of 
his acquaintance. He was singularly accurate in his 
judgment ; correct and exact in the discharge of every 
duty ; patient and assiduous, but decided, in anything 
he undertook. His disposition and character were 
equable ; and he wore well, as a soldier and a citizen, 
— as a friend, a father, and a husband. 



ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 



.This gallant officer, whose fate so closely resembles 
that of the chivalric, ardent, and romantic Montgomery, 
was bred in a camp, lived a soldier's life, and died a 
soldier's death. 

" Brief, brave, and glorious, was his young career !" 

Like Sidney before the walls of Zutphen, he per- 
iished in the hour of victory, when he had just plucked 
the coronal of his fame ; like him, too, rejoicing that his 
death was for the honor of his country. 

General Pike was descended from a family of sol- 
diers. One of his ancestors. Captain John Pike, was 
highly distinguished, according to the traditionary ac- 
counts, in the early Indian wars of the colony. His 
father, Major Zebulon Pike, entered the army of the 
United States as a captain of infantry, in 1792, having 
served, with liigh credit, in the levies of the previous 
year, and was promoted to the rank of major in 1800. 
His son, the hero of this sketch, was born at Lamber- 
ton. New Jersey, the residence of the family for many 
generations, on the fifth day of January, 1779. While 
he was yet a child, his father removed to Bucks 
County, Pennsylvania, and thence to Easton. In his 



324 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 

boyhood, he was remarkable both for his spirit and 
bravery, and his thoughtful and studious habits. He 
enjoyed but few advantages, and obtained a knowledge 
only of the ordinary branches of an English education. 

At an early age, he accompanied his father to the 
western frontiers of the Union, and served for some time 
as a cadet in his company. On the third of March, 
1799, he received a commission as ensign in the 2nd 
infantry, and on the twenty-fourth of April, 1800, was 
promoted to a first lieutenancy in the same regi)iient. 
During the year 1800, he was transferred to the 1st 
infantry. Unlike most of the young officers around 
him, wlio contented themselves with going through the 
customary routine of barrack duty, he devoted all his 
leisure time to reading and study. Without the aid 
of an instructor, ho became tolerably well acquainted 
with the French, Latin, and Spanish languages, and 
made considerable proficiency in mathematics and gen- 
eral science. He Vv-as not indis^erently versed in polite 
literature, though much could not have been expected 
from him in this respect, as his reading and studies 
were very desultory in their character. He possessed 
an inquiring mind, habits of investigation and reflec- 
tion, and was a nice observer of men and things ; he 
was likewise patient and assiduous in his efforts to im- 
prove his mind, — but all these good qualities did not 
make up for the absence of a regular system. 

In March, 1801, Pike was married to Miss Clarissa 
Brown, of Cincinnati. Ho was tenderly and devotedly 
attached to his wife, and had several children by her, 
only one of whom, a daughter, survived him. 

After the purchase of Louisiana from France, Mr. 



EXPEDITION UP THE mSSISSIPPI. 325 

Jefferson projected several expeditions of discovery in 
the territory newly acquired. Captain Lewis and 
Lieutenant Clarke were selected to ascend the JMissouri, 
to cross the mountains, and trace the Columbia river 
to its mouth ; and about the same time, Lieutenant 
Pike was ord'ered by his commanding officer, General 
"Wilkinson, to conduct an expedition to the sources of 
the Mississippi. On the ninth of August, 1805, he left 
St. Louis in a keel boat, seventy feet long, with pro- 
visions for four months ; his whole party consisting of 
one sergeant, one corporal, and seventeen private sol- 
diers. There was not a scientific man attached to the 
expedition ; his men were totally unacquainted with 
the country ; and Pike himself was required to perform 
the duties, as he remarks in the Preface to his pub- 
lished Narrative, " of astronomer, surveyor, command- 
ing officer, clerk, spy, guide, and hunter." 

lie was absent on this expedition nearly nine months. 
He visited a great number of Indian tribes, attended 
several councils, made treaties with them, and purchased 
valuable tracts of land. On the sixteenth of October 
lie erected a stockade, and established a winter station 
for his men, two hundred and thirty-three miles above 
the falls of St. Anthony. He was determined to pursue 
his explorations still further, and accordingly commenced 
his preparations as soon as practicable. While he re- 
mained at the encampment, its tedious monotony was 
relieved by the excitement of the chase. In December, 
he contirmed his journey in canoes and on foot — his 
men drawing their baggage on sleds over the frozen 
snow. After visiting Sandy, Leech, and Red Cedar 
lakes, and making his surveys and examinations, ho 



326 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY TIKE. 

returned to liLs stockade, where he had left his sergeant, 
and invalid soldiers, on the eighteenth of February, 
1806. He was compelled to wait here till the breaking 
up of the ice in the spring, when he descended the 
river to St. Louis, arriving there on the thirtieth of 

April. 

General Wilkinson was so well pleased with the 
manner in which Lieutenant Pike had conducted the 
expedition up the Mississippi, that within four months 
after his return, he selected him to undertake a similar 
enterprise. On the fifteenth of July, 1806, he em- 
barked at St. Louis, with his party, consisting of one 
lieutenant, one sergeant, two corporals, sixteen privates, 
and an interpreter, together with forty Osage captives, 
who had recently been recovered from their enemies, 
the Potowatomies. Dr. Robinson^ a professional gentle- 
man, accompanied the expedition as a volunteer. 

Proceeding up the Missouri river to the Osage country, 
Lieutenant Pike restored the captives to their friends, 
and then made his way to the Pawnee towns, with 
whom he partially succeeded in cultivating friendly 
relations. His efforts, however, were in a great meas- 
ure frustrated, by their proxuuity to the Spanish settlers 
of New Mexico, a large body of whom had lately visited 
their country. 

Having fulfilled the duties required of him in the 
Indian country. Lieutenant Pike proceeded to obey his 
further instructions, to explore the territory lying on 
the headwaters of the Arkansas and Red rivers. After 
leaving the Indian neighborhood, he and his party en- 
countered the severest hardships and fatigues. On 
reaching the Arkansas, he directed Lieutenant Wilkin- 



TAKEN PRISONER TO CHIHUAHUA. 327 

son to descend the river to the military post on its lower 
waters, with seven men of the party. He then held on his 
way with the remainder of liis command, and, at length, 
after days and weeks of toil and suftering — he and his 
men being compelled for a portion of the time to carry 
seventy pounds each on their backs — he arrived on what 
he supposed to be the bank of the Red river, but which 
proved to be the Rio Grande. 

While encamped in the vicinity of the river, he was 
visited by a detachment of Spanish and Mexican lanc- 
ers, by whom he was conducted to Santa Fe. The 
Spaniards were at that time extremely inimical towards 
the people of the United States, and it was probably 
supposed that Pike was connected with the expedition 
of Colonel Burr. He was treated with great respect, 
however, but was carefully watched, and shortly after- 
wards sent, with his party, to Chihuahua, the residence 
of the Captain-general of the Internal Provinces, under 
a strong escort. All his papers, with the exception of 
his private journal, were here taken from him, and he 
was then permitted to return home, accompanied by an 
escort, by way of San Antonio and Nacogdoches, — 
though he was forbidden to take any notes, or make 
any observations, on the route. He evaded this pro- 
hibition, by making his memoranda on small scraps of 
paper, which were concealed in the gunbarrels of his 
men. On the first of July, 1807, the long and arduous 
expedition terminated, by the arrival of himself and 
party at Natchitoches. 

On his return to the United States, Pike found himself 
promoted to the rank of captain. His conduct received 
the express approbation of the Secretary of War, and 



328 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 

his zeal, perseverance, and intelligence, elicited a high, 
but richly deserved encomium, from a committee of 
Congress. He subsequently prepared a Narrative of his 
Expedition, abounding in interesting and useful infor- 
mation, and accompanied with valuable maps and charts, 
which was published in 1810, 

In 1809, Pilvc \vas raised to a majority in the 6th 
infantry, and, in ISIO, was appointed lieutenant col- 
onel of the 4tli infantry. Being engaged on detached 
service at the southwest, he was not present at the 
battle of Tippecanoe, in November, 1811, in which his 
regiment bore so prominent a part. While holding the 
rank of lieutenant colonel, he was appointed deputy 
quartermaster general, the duties of which office he 
discharged with commendable fidelity and punctuality. 

On the twentieth day of May, 1812, Colonel Pike was 
present at a numerous meeting of the citizens of Pliil- 
adelphia, held in the State House yard, the object of 
which was to embolden the government to declare war 
against Great Britain. He took no part in the pro- 
ceedings, but was not an uninterested spectator. His 
whole soul was in his prufession ; his heart glowed 
with the noble ambition of the soldier ; and he gladly 
welcomed these expressions of the popular will, as the 
certain indications that he would soon be summoned to 
the field. He panted for action, for glory and fame. 
His ardent wish was soon gratified, by the declaration 
of war in June following, and on the increase of the 
army, in July, he was promoted to the colonelcy of the 
loth infantry. 

Shortly after receiving his new commission. Colonel 
Pike proceeded to the Champlain frontier, where he 



INCURSION INTO CANADA. 329 

was stationed for some months, under the immediate 
orders of General Dearborn, with a command consist- 
ing of twenty-five hundred men. He found the troops 
in great need of discipline, and labored earnestly and 
indefatigably to correct the difliculty. No regular sys- 
tem of tactics had then been adopted ; some officers 
adhering to that of " Old Steuben," in vogue during 
the revolution, and others adopting the more modern 
French system. Pike was active in his temperament, 
enthusiastic, ambitious to excel, and, perhaps, too fond 
of innovations. He felt himself at liberty to choose for 
himself, and therefore drilled his own regiment in three 
ranks, according to the French mode ; the rear rank 
being provided with short guns and long pikes. They 
made a bristling appearance in the charge, but wei-e 
not very serviceable, and soon became known in the 
army as " Pike's regiment of pikesy After his death 
the short guns and pikes were no longer used. 

One of the innovations introduced l:)y Pike, was that 
of drilling his men with snow shoes, in anticipation of 
a winter campaign in Canada ; and there are many 
amusing anecdotes related of the singular appearance 
presented by his men when going through their ma- 
noeuvres and evolutions on parade. 

In October, 1812, Colonel Pike made a successful 
incursion into Canada, with his regiment ; the northern 
army being then stationed near the frontier, in the 
town of Champlain. On the nineteenth instant, he 
surprised a body of British and Indians stationed at a 
blockhouse, destroyed a large quantity of public stores, 
I and returned to camp without sustaining much loss. 
In the winter of 1813, he was assigned to the command 



330 2EBUL0N MONTGOMERY PIKE. 

of a brigade, and was ordered from Plattsburg to Sack- 
etts Harbor, in consequence of a report that Sir George 
Prevost designed to attack that post.*' 

At the opening of the campaign of 1813, Pike was 
promoted to tiie rank of brigadier general, and accom- 
})anied General Dearborn in his expedition against 
Yorlv. It was the great fault committed by our gen- 
erals in the war of 1812, that no permanent lodgment 
was made on the Canada shore, between Kingston and 
Montreal. Had this been done, the two provinces 
would have been effectually detached, and the upper 
one must of necessity have submitted to the authority 
of the United States. The instructions issued from the 
War Department to General Dearborn, in the spring 
of 1813, specified Kingston and York, Forts George 
and Erie, as suitable points of attack. It was, of 
course, designed that an attempt should be first made 
on Kingston ; but the commanding general was de- 
ceived by a false report- as to its strength, intended by 
the enemy to produce that efi'ect, and therefore selected 
York, the capital of Upper Canada, now known as 
Toronto. 

Pike was constantly employed at Sacketts Harbor, 
in drilling the men intended for the expedition, which 
was to be a secret one, — it being understood that he 
was to have the actual command of the forces, though 
General Dearborn decided to accompany him. The 
troops, to the number of about seventeen hundred men, 
were embarked on board Commodore Chauncey's fleet, 
on the twenty-third of April, 1813, and set sail on the 

* See Memoir of General Macomb, ante. 



EXPEDITION AGAINST YORK. 331 

twenty-fifth instant. On the morning of the twenty- 
seventh, they hove in sight of York, and the landing in- 
stantly commenced, in the small boats, under the direc- 
tion of General Pike, who had previously made all the 
necessary arrangements, and issued the most precise 
orders, which were directed to be read at the head of 
every corps. 

It was originally designed that the debarkation should 
take place on the open shore, near the ruins of old Fort 
Toronto, about two miles above York ; but the preva- 
lence of a strong east wind forced the boats on a part 
of the coast fringed with trees and underbrush, which 
afforded an excellent cover to the enemy's sharpshooters. 
Major Forsyth led the descent with his rifle corps. His 
men cheered lustily as their boats skimmed over the 
blue waters, and rapidly neared the beach. The alarm 
had already been communicated to General Sheaffe, 
the commandant of the garrison at York ; a strong 
body of grenadiers, with the Glengary fencibles, were 
paraded on the shore to oppose the landing ; a still 
larger force of regulars and militia, at least seven hun- 
dred strong, were observed in the rear ; and there were 
five or six hundred Indians scattered through the woods 
in detached parties. 

As Major Forsyth approached the shore, a heavy fire 
of musketry and rifles was poured on his command. 
He at once ordered his men to rest a few seconds on 
their oars, and return the enemy's fire. General Pike 
was at this moment standing on the deck of his ship, 
intently surveying the scene with his glass. Observing 
what he thought a cowardly pause on the part of the 
advance, he exclaimed to his staff, " I can stay here no 



332 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 

longer, — come, jump into the boat !" As he spoke, he 
leaped into the boat, followed by his officers, gave the 
order to make way, and pushed into the thickest of the 
fire. 

Meantime, Major Forsyth and his men had gallantly 
driven the enemy from the bank, and effected a land- 
ing. They then sheltered themselves behind the trees 
and bushes, and opened a lively fire. The first volley 
of the enemy had killed their armorer, the best shot in 
the corps, and they now made the woods ring with the 
shrill report of their pieces, and their loud shouts for 
vengeance. 

General Pike soon landed, with Major King's in- 
fantry, the light artillery under Major Eustis, the vol- 
unteer corps of Colonel McClure, and Lieutenant Rid- 
dle's rifles. The general placed himself at the head of 
the platoon first formed, and ordering the rest to follow, 
dashed up the bank under a fierce shower of bullets 
from the grenadiers. His noble example ins]:)ired his 
men with confidence. Willing hearts found ready 
hands. At the word they sprang forward with the 
utmost vivacity and fu'mness, and charged impetuously 
upon the enemy, who almost immediately broke, and 
retired in disorder towards their works in the town. 
At the same instant, Forsyth's bugles pealed forth their 
merry notes of victory. The effect on the Indians was 
electrical ; they gave a loud yell and fled in every di- 
rection ; but the Glengary fencibles still maintained an 
irregular fire. A fresh body of grenadiers now issued 
from the wood, and made a dash at Major King's reg- 
iment ; at first, the latter faltered under the terrible 



EXPLOSION OF THE MAGAZINE. 333 

crash of the bayonet, but they speedily rallied, returned 
the charge with a will, and drove the enemy from the 
field. 

All the troops having landed, they were formed in 
order of attack, and led on by General Pike in person, 
against the enemy's works. Advancing through the 
wood, they came within range of a twenty-four pounder 
gun planted in one of the batteries. The battery was 
stormed and cleared in an instant. A second work was 
soon after entered, which had previously been aban- 
doned. The assailants then moved forward, in columns, 
upon the principal intrenchment, whither the enemy 
had retreated. On approaching it, the barracks ap- 
peared to have been evacuated. Suspecting some trick, 
General Pike ordered a halt, and sent Lieutenant Rid- 
dle forward to reconnoitre. 

In the meanwhile, General Pike, ever as humane and 
generous, as he was brave, had aided in removing a 
wounded British soldier with his own hands to a place 
of safety, and then sat down on the stump of a tree 
with one of the enemy's sergeants who had been taken 
prisoner. He was busily employed in examining him, 
with the assistance of his aids, when the hill-side was 
suddenly convulsed as if with the throes of an earth- 
quake. The magazine in the main work of the enemy 
exploded with a deafening roar. Huge volumes of 
smoke darkened the air ; vast columns of flame shot up 
towards the sky ; and large masses of fragments were 
thrown into the air, where they hung suspended for a 
moment, and then descended with a sharp hissing 
•sound, crushing into the earth both friends and foes 



334 



ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 



within a circuit of three hundred yards.* The maga- 
zine was constructed of stone, and one of the heaviest 
masses fell upon the group gathered about General 
Pike. All, except one of the aids, were mortally- 
wounded, — the general himself receiving a severe con- 
tusion on the breast. 

The American troops for an instant recoiled before 
this terrible catastrophe ; but they were quickly re- 
formed by Colonel Pearce, of the 16th infantry, who 
now assumed the command, and his subordinate officers ; 
the lively strains of martial music soon rei'nspired them ; 
and they were again led forward to the attack, rending 
the air, as they advanced, with their loud hurrahs. As 
they filed past the suffering, but heroic Pike, whose 
breast and sides were literally crushed in, he said, " Push 
on, my brave fellows, and avenge your general !" — They 
instantly dashed on with redoubled zeal ; though the 
plume of their gallant leader was no longer to be seen, 
his influence was still upon them ; and in a few hours 
the victory was completed, by the capture of the town 
and fort ; General Sheaffe making a precijiitate retreat 
with his regulars, in the direction of Kiuijston. The 
public buildings and barracks were destroyed, and the 

* Some of the escapes made on this occasion were rather amusing; — 
one officer saved himself by dodging under a gun. and another by spring- 
ing into an empty pork barrel. It was for a long time supposed that the 
explosion was the work of design, and the circumstance of finding the 
lighted trains at Fort George, (See Memoir of General Scott.) in May 
following, tended to strengthen this impression. General Sheaffe, how- 
ever, repelled the dishonorable imputation, and declared that it was 
wholly accidental. The most critical and reliable biographer of Genera! 
Pike. (See Memoir of Pike, by Colonel Whiting, in Sparks' American 
Biography,) adopts the opinion that it was a mere accident, and could 
not have been designed. 



HIS DEATH. 335 

military stores removed ; and the place was then aban- 
doned. The enemy lost about two hundred men in killed 
and wounded, and nearly three hundred were taken 
prisoners. The loss of the Americans was three hun- 
dred and twenty killed and wounded, principally caused 
by the explosion of the magazine. Between thirty and 
forty of the enemy were also killed and wounded by the 
explosion. 

After the advance of the troops, Pike was taken up 
by some of his men, under the direction of tlie sur- 
geons, to be conveyed on board the ship. As they 
reached the shore of the lake, a loud prolonged shout 
was heard, evidently proceeding from his brigade. The 
cheering sound revived the dying hero. Like Wolfe 
upon the plains of Abraham, he turned his head with 
an inquiring look. This was noticed by a sergeant 
beside him, who instantly cried, " The British union 
jack is coming down, general — the stars are going up 1" 
Pike struggled to speak, but the effort was vain ; he 
heaved a deep sigh, and a glad smile lighted up his fine 
features. He was then rowed to the Commodore's ship 
and taken on board. He lingered a few hours in great 
pain, being unable to articulate a single syllable. Just 
before he breathed his last, as his eye was glazing in 
death, the British standard was brought to him ; ho 
jnade a sign to have it placed under his head, and 
calmly breathed his last. 

The personal intrepidity of G eneral Pike was not his 
only good quality. He was devotedly attached to his 
profession, and jealous of the preservation of its honor, 
— as was evinced by the orders issued on the morning 
of the fatal twenty-seventh of April. Among them 



336 ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE. 

was one, in which he prohibited any molestation of the 
jjcrsons or property of private citizens, and strictly en- 
joined upon his troops that they should refrain from 
committing outrages of every character, however much 
they might be provoked. He was pure-minded, frank 
and ingenuous ; firm in danger, and resolute in adver- 
sity ; blameless in life, and heroic in death, — exempli- 
fying, under circumstances that required the exhibition 
of unusual fortitude and resignation, the truthful sen- 
timent. of the Roman poet — 

" Dulce, et decorum est, pro patria mori !" 

On the day previous to the embarkation at Sacketts 
Harbor, General Pike addressed a letter to his father, 
in which he said : "I embark to-morrow in the fleet 
at Sacketts Harbor, at the head of a column of fifteen 
hundred choice troops, on a secret expedition. If suc- 
cess attend my steps, honor and glory await my name ; 
if defeat, still shall it be said that we died like brave 
men, and conferred honor, even in death, on the Amer- 
ican name. Should I be the happy mortal destined to 
turn the scale of war, will you not rejoice, O my father ? 
May Heaven be propitious, and smile on the cause of 
my country ! But if we are destined to fall, may my 
fall be like Wolfe's — to sleep in the arms of victory !" 

The hero's wish was gratified. The same breeze that 
fanned his cheek, and cooled the aching forehead on 
which the death-damp was rapidly gathering, unfurled 
the victorious banner, welcomed, as it shook its star- 
gemmed folds above the heads of his brave soldiers, 
with a deafening shout that went up like the gush of 



HTS CIIARACTER, 337 

many waters. He desired no highsr, or gi'eatcr dis- 
tinction, in life, than to serve his country in the tented 
field — he asked no nobler death than that which awaited 
him, in the hour of his proud triumph : — 

" He died, as hearts like his should die, — 
In the hot clasp of victory !" 

15 



WIN FIE ID SCOTT. 



On learning the particulars of the defeat of Marshal 
Ney at Dennewitz, says St. Cyr, in his Histoire Mili- 
taire,^ Napoleon remarked, that " he knew of but one 
general who had constantly gained by experience, and that 
was Turenne, whose great talents were the result of pro- 
found study." A similar remark might, not inappropri- 
ately, be applied to Winfield Scott, the General-in- 
Chief of the Army of the United States. For more than 
forty years he has been in the military service of tlie 
American people, constantly improving in reputation, as 
in the knowledge appertaining to his profession, — the 
experience of each year furnishing new and useful les- 
sons to its successor, v/hich have not been permitted to 
remain unimproved, — and he now stands before the 
country and the world, occupying a high place among 
the heroes of modern times, and towermg far above 
his compeers, in stature and in fame. 

Among the Scottish gentlemen who rallied aroun 
Charles Edward, when he unfurled the banner of his 
kingly race on the hills of Glenfinnan, on the nineteenth 
of August, l74o, were two brotlicrs, by the name of 
Scott. They adhered to " the young Chevalier" tln'ough 

* Tom, iv.. {). l.'>0. 




GENL. WINFIELD SCOTT, 
Commander in Chief. United States Army. 



BIRTH AND EDUCATION. 339 

weal and woe, through good and evil report, till the for- 
tunes of the Stuarts sank forever on the bloody field 
of Culloden. The elder brother sealed his loyalty with 
his life on that fatal day ; and the younger, being se- 
riously compromised by his participation in the rebel- 
lion, emigrated to America, and established himself in 
the practice of the law, in the then Colony of Virginia. 
His son William, a farmer by occupation, married into 
one of the most respectable families in Virginia, and 
died in 1791, leaving two sons and several daughters. 
The elder son, James, commanded a regiment of Vir- 
ginia militia, at Norfolk, in 1812 ; the younger was 
"Winfield, the subject of this biographical notice, who 
was born near Petersburg, Virginia, on the thirteenth 
of June, 1786. 

Within two years after the death of his father, young 
Scott was also deprived of his mother, and, at the age 
of seventeen, was left his sole master, possessed of but 
limited means, to make or mar his fortune, as he him- 
self decided to guide the little bark freighted with his 
boyish hopes and aspirations. Happily, he had been 
early accustomed to habits of self-government and self- 
reliance. He was frank and ingenuous by nature ; 
ardent, ambitious, and chivalric, in his temperament ; 
gifted with a superior intellect ; industrious by inclina- 
tion, as well as from a consciousness of its importance ; 
quick to perceive, and ready to learn. Qualities like 
these, properly improved and directed, are always sure 
to reward their possessor a hundred fold ; for mind, like 
water, will, sooner or later, find its own appropriate 
level. 

Scott was originally designed for the legal profession. 



340 WINFIELD SCOTT- 

He pursued a regular course of instruction in mathe- 
matics and the classics, in the High-School at Rich- 
mond, then in charge of a distinguished teacher of the 
name of Ogilvie, and afterwards repaired to William 
and Mary College, where he spent between one and two 
years, and attended a course of law lectures. His le- 
gal studies were completed in the office of David 
Robertson, a learned and able lawyer, and in 1806 he 
was admitted to the bar. He spent the following year 
in his native state, riding the circuit two terms in the 
vicinity of Petersburg, and residing most of the time 
with Benjamin Watkins Leigh, subsequently one of 
the most eminent counsellors and advocates in Virginia. 
In the fall of 1807, he visited South Carolina, intend- 
ing to establish himself in practice in the city of Charles- 
ton. Failing, for want of time, to procure the pas- 
sage of a bill by the legislature, specially exempting 
him from the statutory provision requiring a year's 
residence in the state, he returned to Virginia. 

This was, perhaps, the most fortunate disappointment 
he has ever experienced. The whole country was then 
in a complete ferment of agitation. The attack on the 
Chesapeake took place in June previous, and a war 
was confidently predicted as the inevitable result. 
President Jefferson issued a proclamation prohibiting 
British armed vessels from entering the harbors of the 
United States, and bodies of militia were called out for 
the defence of the coast, and the enforcement of the 
prohibition. The first blast of the trumpet roused 
young Scott from his siudies, and dissolved many of 
his gayest and brightest dreams of future eminence and 
distinction among the gentlemen of the gown and wig. 



APPOINTED A CAPTAIN OF ARTILLERY. 



341 



He enrolled himself as a member of a volunteer troop 
of horse raised in Petersburg, and, in the summer of 
1807, performed a tour of duty on Lynnhaven Bay. 

Visions of military greatness and renown danced 
constantly before him, while on his visit to South Caro- 
lina, which more than half compensated for his disap- 
pointment. He took a deep interest in the progress of 
the dithculties with England and France, and his sym- 
pathies were warmly enlisted in behalf of his country. 
His voice and his pen were both employed in defence 
of the administration of Mr. Jefferson, and of that of 
his successor, Mr. Madison; and from the time of the 
attack on the Chesapeake, till the declaration of war, 
he was an active and energetic supporter of war 
measures. . 

Immediately after his return to Virginia, he deter- 
mined to abandon his profession and enter the army. 
Accordingly, he applied to the President, for a commis- 
sion in one of the new regiments proposed to be raised 
by a bill introduced in Congress at the session of 1807-8. 
The bill lingered sometime on its passage, and, in the 
meanwhile, Scott returned to his circuit. It finally 
became a law in April, 1808 ; and on the third day of 
May following, through the influence of his friend, the 
Hon. Wm. B. Giles, then a senator in Congress, and 
afterwards governor of the State of Virginia, he was 
commissioned, by President Jefterson, a captain of light 
artillery. Briefs and black-letter tomes, red tape and 
parchment, were now thrown aside ; his company was 
raised and organized ; and early in 1809, he joined the 
army under General Wilkinson, at New Orleans. 

The character of the connection of Wilkinson with 



342 AVINFIELD SCOTT. 

the intrigues of Colonel Burr, as indicated by the testi- 
mony elicited on the trial of the latter, which took place 
while Scott was in Virginia, had not produced a very 
favorable impression on his mind. General Wilkinson, 
however, was pleased with the appearance and talents 
of his subordinate ; he mentioned him as a young man 
" who could speak, and write, and fight", and made re- 
peated attempts to attach him to his interest. Scott 
calmly, but firmly, declined to meet his advances in a 
similar spirit, and took no pains to conceal the opinions 
he had formed. In the autumn of 1809, General Wil- 
kinson was relieved by General Hampton, in the com- 
mand of the southern army, — the main body of which 
was stationed near Natchez. Scott was now more un- 
guarded in his conversation, and on one occasion, perhaps 
unwisely, though his sincerity cannot be doubted, in- 
dulged in the strongest terms of reprehension. Charges 
were soon after preferred against him,* and in January, 
1810, he was tried and found guilty, of having uttered 
disrespectful language towards his superior officer. 
General Wilkinson. The sentence of the court was, 
that he should be suspended " from all rank, pay, and 
emoluments, for the space of twelve months." 

The following year was spent by Captain Scott, at 
Richmond, in the family of his friend, iMr. Leigh, who 

* The charge was, in substance, that General Scott remarked at a 
public table, that he had never seen but two traitors, viz. : Generals Wil- 
kinson and Burr, — and that General Wilkinson was a liar and a 
scoundrel. Whatever may have been the justice of Scott's sentence, 
for violating the rules of military subordination, he had certainly strong 
reasons for associating the name of Wilkinson with that of Curr, inas- 
much as there were then weighty suspicions attachuig to the conduct of 
the former which have never been wholly removed. 



PRO.MOTED TO LIEL'TENANT COLONEL. 343 

tendered him the free use of his large library. The 
opportunity thus afforded, for benefiting his mind, was 
faithfully improved. The greater part of the period of 
his suspension was spent in the careful and diligent 
study of works on military science ; and he thus laid 
the foundation of that vast and comprehensive informa- 
tion, which subsequently embraced every department 
of knowledge belonging to, or connected with, his 
profession. 

A further augmentation of the army, consequent 
upon the declaration of war against Great Britain, was 
made in the summer of 1812, and in the month of 
July, upon the urgent recommendation of the Virginia 
delegation in Congress, Scott was promoted to the rank 
of lieutenant colonel in the 2nd artillery. He at once 
proceeded to the Niagara frontier, with two companies 
of his regiment, and took post at Black Rock, to pro- 
tect the naval depot at that place. 

It is well ]<;nown that the venerable Albert Gallatin, 
whose varied learning, and great abilities, are so highly 
honored and esteemed at home and abroad, was de- 
cidedly opposed, as a member of Mr. Madison's cabinet, 
to the war with England, or to a war with any foreign 
power ; and the younger, and more ardent and ambi- 
tious, members of the party to which he belonged, often 
complained that he did not render that hearty support 
to the administration, in the management of the affairs 
of his department, necessary to the vigorous prosecu- 
tion of hostilities. On one occasion he is reported to 
have doubtingly inquired of Lieutenant Elliott, of the 
navy, what they were to do for vessels on Lake Erie, 
when they had none, and there was no money to bnild 



844 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

any ? " Take them !" said the lieutenant, in whose 
patriotism calculations of dollars and cents had no 
place. — The theory of the young officer was gallantly 
put in practice on the night of the eighth of October, 
1812, on the shores of the Niagara. The Caledonia, a 
British brig of war, the next year employed in Perry's 
squadron, and the Detroit, formerly the Adams sur- 
rendered by Hull, were cut out from under the guns 
of Fort Erie, where they were lying at anchor, and 
brought oft' with their crews, by a party in two boats, 
headed by Elliott in person. Captain Towson, of the 
2nd artillery, and a portion of his company, belonging 
to Scott's command, took part in the expedition. Scott 
himself volunteered to accompany his men, but was 
not permitted to go ; he rendered important assistance, 
however, by the fire of his guns, in preventing the re- 
capture of the Detroit, which grounded on Squaw 
Island. It being found impossible to get her off", she 
was subsequently burned, by order of General Smythe. 
Early in the month of October, 1812, there were near 
fifteen hundred regular troops at Buffalo and Fort Ni- 
agara, under the command of General Smythe ; and 
General Stephen Van Rensselaer, of the New York 
militia, the commander of the united force, known as the 
Army of the Centre, Iiad concentrated about twenty- 
five hundred men at Lewiston. Nothing was talked 
of but the invasion and conquest of Canada. The suc- 
cessful enterprise under Elliott infused new zeal into 
the breasts of the really patriotic, but raw and undis- 
ciplined militia ; and all that was then required to have 
terminated the campaign, and perhaps the war, by a 
bold and successful stroke in the upper province, was 



ATTACK ON QUEENSTON. 345 

the presence of resolute and energetic general officers. 
General Smythe possessed few of the qualifications re- 
quisite in a skilful and successful soldier, and there was 
very little cordiality of feeling existing between him 
and General Van Rensselaer, — when, had they zeal- 
ously cooperated together, and made a vigorous irrup- 
tion into the enemy's country, at the head of their com- 
bined forces, the power of England in Upper Canada, 
would have been at an end in three weeks. 

General Van Rensselaer was high-minded and pa- 
triotic, and not deficient in ability or personal bravery, 
but he was, to some extent, jealous of the regular offi- 
cers, and did not infuse that energy into his operations, 
whicli, after all, is the gi'eat secret of converting militia 
into reliable troops. Day after day passed by, and the 
army still remained inactive. Action and excitement 
are always necessary to keep up the spirits of a newly 
organized militia force. Nothing was done in this re- 
spect, until the men threatened to return home, when 
an attack was planned on the British post at Queenston, 
nearly opposite Lewiston ; it being understood that the* 
greater part of the enemy's forces had been withdrawn 
from the peninsula, for the defence of Maiden. 

The morning of the eleventh of October was fixed 
upon for the attack ; but on account of the violence 
of the weather, and the want of a sufficient number 
of boats, it was postponed to the thirteenth, when it 
was arranged to take place in two columns, one of mi- 
litia, and the other of regulars, each to consist of three 
hundred men. Colonel Solomon Van Rensselaer, of 
the New York militia, and Lieutenant Colonel Chrys- 
tie, of the 13th infantry, were selected to command the 

1.5* 



346 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

two columns. Lieutenant Colonel Fenwick was to 
follow the movement with a force of two hundred reg- 
ulars, under Major MuUaney. 

The arrangements for storming the heights of Queens- 
ton were completed on the twelfth of October, and late 
in the evening of that day Lieutenant Colonel Scott 
hastened to Lewiston, through mud, and rain, and 
sleet, and entreated General Van Rensselaer to permit 
him to serve as a volunteer with the attacking force. 
His services were declined, but he was authorized to 
bring his command to Lewiston, there to act as cir- 
cumstances might require. He instantly returned to 
Schlosser, where his men were posted, ordered them 
under arms, and just before daylight arrived at Lewis- 
ton, bringing with him two pieces of artillery which 
were conveyed down the river in a boat, in consequence 
of the bad state of the roads. The troops under Van 
Rensselaer and Chrystie had already passed the river, — 
though with not much regularity, on account of the 
deficiency of boats, — under a heavy fire from the en- 
emy's batteries ; and they were now warmly engaged 
on the opposite bank. Colonel Van Rensselaer and 
Lieutenant Colonel Chrystie were both known to bo 
severely wounded, and Scott was finally ordered to 
cross over and take the command. The detachment 
under Major Mullaney, had previously attempted the 
passage, but their boats being seized by the eddies, they 
were driven below the point designated for the landing, 
and directly under the British batteries ; the whole 
detachment, therefore, with the exception of Major 
Mullaney and a few of his men, who made their es- 



CROSSES TlIK RIVER. 347 

cape, were obliged to surrender themselves as prisoners 
of war. 

Leaving his train in battery on the American shore, 
under the command of Captains Towson and Barker, 
who opened an effective fire on the enemy, Scott crossed 
the stream, about eisdit o'clock in the morninsf when 
he found that the British force, consisting of two flank 
companies of the 49th, and a body of militia, had been 
driven from their position ; that Captain Wool had 
stormed the heights south of the town, with three com- 
panies of the 13th infantry, and carried the enemy's 
batteries ; and that the British commander. General 
Brock, had been killed in an unsuccessful charge, which 
he had gallantly headed in person. He also ascertained 
that General Wadsworth, of the New York militia, 
had reached the Canada shore, though without the 
knowledge of General Van Rensselaer, and, of course, 
was entitled to the command. General Wadsworth, 
however, magnanimously waived all claims of superior 
rank, and requested Scott to make sucli dispositions as 
he thought proper. 

Although the American detachments, who had made 
a lods:ment on the Canada shore, remained for several 
hours unmolested, it was not doubted that the enemy 
would rally again before night. Scott arranged his 
men, therefore, so as both to cover the ferry, in order 
that he might be reinforced if necessary, and to repel 
an attack. About the middle of the day, General 
Van Rensselaer came over, and having examined and 
approved of his arrangements, returned to superintend 
the crossing of the remainder of the troops. But the 
sight of the action in the morning had cooled the ardor 



348 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

and impatience of the militia. Some few parties were 
induced to cross over, — though most of them might as 
well have remained behind ; but the great body of the 
command had entirely forgotten their former boisterous 
professions of patriotism. General Van Rensselaer al- 
ternately coaxed and threatened, but it was all to no 
purpose. Every circumstance was calculated to dis- 
courage them ; many of the boats, originally too few in 
number, had been crippled, the current was rapid, the 
stream one complete sheet of eddies, and the weather 
cold, wet, and stormy. They would not, and they did 
not go ; but they stood still, and with the utmost un- 
concern and indifference, saw their countrymen sacri- 
ficed on the opposite shore of the river, when their 
presence would have changed the fate of the day. 

Between two and three o'clock in the afternoon, small 
parties of the enemy were seen hovering along the 
slopes of the hills, and, shortly after, the action was 
fiercely renewed by the rallied militia and grenadiers, 
and about four hundred Indians, under Norton, who 
had heard the previous firing, and had hurried down 
from Chippewa. With a mixed command of regulars 
and militia, not far from three hundred and fifty strong 
— nearly four hundred of the militia being seized with 
a panic, and refusing to take part in the action — Scott 
boldly encountered the enemy.- A sharp conflict ensued 
for a few moments, and the assailants were then driven 
back, and put to flight, by a forward movement of the 
bayonet. 

The protection of the ferry rendered a pursuit impos- 
sible. Scott therefore reformed his line, in readiness 
for another attack. He had just returned to the rear, 



GALLANTRY AND INTREPIDITY. 349 

to direct his men how to unspilce a captured cannon, 
when the enemy ralUed again, and forced in the ad- 
vanced picket. The main Kne, too, had commenced a 
retreat ere he could reach them. Instantly springing 
to the front, by great exertions, in which he was ably 
seconded by General Wads worth and Lieutenant Colonel 
Chrystie, he brought the retreating line to the right 
about. His earnest enthusiasm produced a sudden 
revulsion of feeling, and the enemy were soon a second 
time repulsed. 

Meanwhile, General SheafFe, who commanded the 
troops at Fort George, had hastily collected all his 
disposable forces, and the provincial militia in the 
neighborhood, and was rapidly a]>proaching the scene 
of action. About four o'clock, his column, numbering 
rather more than eight hundred men, emerged into 
open view just below the village of Queenston. Ho 
advanced with much caution, though fnlly aware that 
the Americans Vv^ere greatly inferior to his own force 
in point of numbers, especially when he had effected a 
junction with the light troops and Indians. Leaving 
Queenston on his left, he took a wide circuit through 
the woods, gained the heights, and opened the action 
anew, with a rapid fire of musketry and artillery. 
For half an hour, the little band headed by the daunt- 
less and heroic Scott, manfully held their ground, and 
breasted the volleys that met them on every side. All 
that bravery and skill could do, was nobly performed, — 
but performed in vain ! 

Scott fearlessly exposed his person to the enemy's 
bullets. His tall form, six feet and five inches in 
height, was the most conspicuous object on the field. 



350 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

He was arrayed in full uniform, and was entreated 
again and again to cover up or change some part of his 
dress. " No, no !" said he, smiling ; " I will die in my 
robes !" Others were constantly falling around him, 
but he escaped unharmed. — After the action, when he 
had surrendered himself a prisoner of war, an Indian 
v>'arrior came up to him, and surveying him attentively, 
said — " You are not born to be shot ; so many times — 
(holding up all the fingers of both hands) — so many 
times did I fire at you !" 

The bloody and desperate contest was soon ended. 
Overpowered by superior numbers, and nearly sur- 
rounded on all sides, the Americans retreated to the 
bank of the river, under cover of the precipice, where 
they found the faint-hearted militia concealed in the 
clefts and fissures. Retreat was liopeless ; the troops 
were disheartened ; tliere were no boats in which they 
could cross the river ; and the twilight was fast set- 
tlina: over the field of combat. General Wads worth 
and the other principal ofiicers now held a consultation, 
and it was decided that they should surrender them- 
selves to the enemy. Several messengers were sent 
with a flag, but they failed to reach the British com- 
mander, as they were shot down on the way by the 
Indian rifles. Scott then volunteered to go himself 
He attached a white handkerchief to his sword, and, 
accompanied by Captains Totten and Gibson, made 
his way to the enemy's rear, by taking a circuitous 
route under cover of the precipice overlooking the river. 
He and his companions had all the while been exposed 
to a random fire from the Indians, and on approaching 
the road leading up from the village to the heights, 



TAKEN PRISONKR. 351 

they were suddenly beset by two warriors, who dis- 
charged their rifles at them, and were preparing to rush 
forward with their knives and hatchets, — spaying no 
heed to the sacred character of the flag which they 
carried, — when a British oflicer came up with a file 
of men, and compelled them to desist. 

The three officers were forthwith conducted to the 
presence of General Sheaffe, and terms of capitulation 
agreed on. The force surrendered with Wads worth 
and Scott, consisted of one hundred and thirty-nine 
regulars, and one hundred and fifty-four militia ; about 
four hundred militia, who had taken no part in the en- 
gagement, were afterwards included in the surrender ; 
and there had been about one hundred killed during 
the day — making a total of casualties, including the 
two hundred regulars under Major Mullaney, who 
surrendered in the morning, of near one thousand. 

This disastrous action was the first, as it was the 
most unfortunate, in which Scott was engaged. His 
conduct throughout the day was worthy of all praise. 
He was but a few years older than young Conde, when 
the latter routed the famous corps of Spanish infantry ; 
yet he exhibited the skill and intrepidity of a veteran 
officer, and had he been supported by anything like an 
equal force, it can scarcely be doubted that the setting 
sun would have witnessed the American banners float- 
ing in triumph on the heights of Queenston. 

After the surrender, the American prisoners were 
taken to the village of Niagara, or Newark, under an 
escort, and the officers temporarily lodged in an inn. 
While there, a message was brought in that some one 
at the door wished to see the " tall American." Scott, 



352 AVINFIELD SCOTT. 

presuming, of course, that he was intended by the des- 
ignation, went out into the hall, where he was surprised 
to find the two warriors who had so cowardly attacked 
him when bearing the flag of truce. Both were dis- 
tinguished chiefs — one being the son of the renowned 
P>Iohawk leader, Joseph Brant, and the other known by 
the name of Captain Jacobs. They eagerly commenced 
questioning him in regard to his wounds, and attempted 
to examine his person. Scott bore with them for some 
time, but they soon became angry and insulting, and 
at lengtli Jacobs seized him by the arm to turn him 
round. Scott promptly resented the indignity, and 
hurled the savage from him, with ease, exclaiming, 
" Off, villain ! — you fired like a squaw !" 

The savages at once clenched their knives and toma- 
hawks, and sprang towards him, crying out — " We 
Idll you now ! — Vv'c kill you now !" P'ortunately, in 
one corner of the hall, underneath the staircase, stood 
the swords of the American officers. Scott darted 
buck, caught up a long heavy sabre, turned upon his 
heel, and in a breath stood on his defence ; with an un- 
flinching eye and look regarding the dark warriors, 
whose painted visages lowered fiercely upon him. At 
this moment. Captain Coffin, a member of General 
Sheaffe's staff, entered from the street ; he instantly 
cried out for the guard, caught Jacobs by the arm, and 
placed his pistol at the head of young Brant. This 
had the desired effect. The Indians were intimidated, 
and on the appearance of the guard, retired from the 
inn. Their people, however, were so much excited, 
that Scott could not venture out into the street, during 



INTERFERENCE IN BEHALF OF PRISONERS. 353 

his stay at Niagara, even to dine with the British com- 
mander, without a strong- escort. 

General Brock was buried on Queen ston Heights, 
immediately after the surrender of the American troops, 
and at the request, of Lieutenant Colonel 8cott, who 
so well knew what was due to the memory of the gal- 
lant dead, minute guns were fired from Fort Niagara, 
on the American shore, during the sad ceremony. 

Scott was sent to Quebec with the other prisoners, 
where he was placed on a cartel to be conveyed to Bos- 
ton ; and in January, 1813, he was regiilarly exchanged. 
When the transport was about leaving Quebec, a party 
of British officers came on board, and commenced mus- 
tering the prisoners, with a view of selecting those who 
were ascertained to be Irishmen, by their speech, to be 
sent to England for trial. Great Britain has ever de- 
nied the right of expatriation in the subject, and hence 
these men, if found in arms against her authority, were 
liable, according to her laws, to be convicted of the 
crime of treason. Scott was seated in the cabin ; but 
hearing the tumult, he rushed upon deck. By this 
' time, the British officers had selected twenty-three men 
from the detachment. On learning the cause of the 
disturbance, he forbade the remainder of the prisoners 
to utter a single syllable, when questioned. The men 
readily obeyed him ; the British officers threatened to 
use violence, but he was in nowise intimidated by their 
menaces ; he felt, justly, that the honor of his country 
was for the time in his keeping, and, in spite of threats 
and frowns, persisted in the order he had given. 

The British officers were finally obliged to retire with 
the twenty-three prisoners, but before the latter left the 



354 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

side of the vessel, Scott pledged himself to secure their 
liberation, if it were possible ; but if not, he solemnly 
declared that he would retaliate, on the first prisoners 
whom the fortune of war should place in his power. 
He faithfully kept his word. On his return to the 
United States, he made a full and faithful report of the 
transaction to the Secretary of War, and in May, 1813, 
at the capture of Fort George, selected twenty-three 
prisoners to be held as hostages for the unfortunate 
Irishmen. The British government persisted in their 
determination to try the men and execute them ; con- 
sequently, they ordered forty-six other prisoners into 
confinement ; the Americans reciprocated their con- 
duct, in kind ; but after venting a great deal of spleen 
and ill humor to no purpose, the British ministry find- 
ing their braggadocio of no avail, tacitly surrendered 
their position, and shortly after the peace, the twenty- 
three prisoners taken to England from Quebec, were 
sent home to the United States. Twenty-one of them 
— the remaininsf two bavins: <Jied natural deaths — 
landed in New York, in July, 1815. Almost tlie first 
object which they encountered, was the tall form of the 
gallant Scott, upon whose brow the laurels were yet 
fresh and green which he had won at Chippewa and 
Niagara. They eagerly hailed him as their deliverer, 
caught him in their arms, and nearly overwhelmed him 
with theii" enthusiastic manifestations of gratitude. 

At the opening of the campaign of 1813, Scott was 
appointed adjutant general in the stafT of General 
Dearborn, the head of the army, and the commander 
of the ninth military district. It was stipulated, how- 
ever, on his part, that he should bo entitled to his com- 



ATTACK ON FORT GEORGE. 



355 



mand in the line, on all extraordinary occasions. On 
the second of Marcli, he was promoted to the colonelcy 
of the 2nd artillery, a double regiment, consisting of 
twenty companies. 

The campaign of this year opened auspiciously. The 
forests of Canada were scarcely robed in the bright ar- 
ray of spring, when the American soldiers precipitated 
themselves on her shores. On the twenty-seventh of 
April, York capitulated to the surviving comrades of 
the heroic Pike.* General Dearborn remained for sev- 
eral days in the vicinity ; but on the fifth of May he 
reerabafrked, and, having been joined by successive re- 
inforcements, increasing his command to about five 
thousand men, efiected a landing on the American 
shore, at Four Mile Creek, on the evening of the eighth 
instant. Colonel Scott joined the army shortly after 
the capture of York. The duties devolving upon him, 
as chief of General Dearborn's staff, were intricate and 
multifarious, as the army was newly organized, or 
composed of different corps recently brought together ; 
but they were performed with untiring zeal and in- 
dustry, and in a manner that gave satisfaction to all 
parties concerned. 

The next object of attack, was the British post of 
Fort George, situated opposite Fort Niagara, at the 
mouth of the river. The boats built for the occasion 
were launched on the afternoon of the twenty-sixth of 
May, and their stations a.ssigned ; and careful recon- 
naissances were made of the Canada shore, in order to 
ascertain the most feasible points for landing. The 
movement in the American camp being discovered by 
* See Memoir of General Pike, ante. 



356 



WINFIELD SCOTT. 



the enemy, a severe cannonade was opened on Fort 
Niagara and the adjacent batteries. The roar of the 
howitzers was incessant ; and peal on peal of heavy- 
ordnance reverberated along the beach, with a loud 
crashing noise, and then died away, in deafening echoes, 
among the distant hills and ridges. The fire was soon 
returned from the American fort ; shells were rained 
without intermission on the enemy's batteries, and 
balls sent whistling through the lanes and streets of 
the village of Niagara. 

At three o'clock in the morning of the twenty-seventh 
of May, all was in readiness for the expedition, and the 
signal was given for the flotilla of boats to get under 
weigh. The descent was to be made in six divisions 
of boats, though, in consequence of the early retreat of 
the enemy, all the troops were not landed. In the first 
division was the advanced guard, or forlorn hope, of 
five hundred picked men, led by the intrepid Scott ; in 
the second was the field train, under Colonel Porter ; 
and these were followed, in the order of attack, by the 
brigades of Generals Boyd, Winder and Chandler, and 
a second reserve under Colonel IVIacomb. Owing to a 
strong wind then prevailing, the rapid current, and the 
heavy surf, the landing on the Canada shore was not 
effected as easily as had been anticipated. Under cover 
of the guns of the fleet and of Fort Niagara, which 
opened a terrible fire, that crushed down the walls 
and batteries in and about Fort George, in huge 
masses, at nine o'clock in the morning. Colonel Scott 
gained the beach, and prepared to land. General Vin- 
cent, the British commander, had previously disposed 
his whole regular force, about nine hundred strong, 



CAPTURE OF THE FORT. 357 

with five or six liundred militia, in a ravine near the 
shore ; and as the Americans approached, they v^'ere 
met by several warm volleys of musketry. 

With shouts and cheers, the American advance leaped 
into the water, and waded to the beach. They in- 
stantly formed on the shingle, covered by an irregular 
bank, from seven to twelve feet high, above which flashed 
the bristling bayonets of the enemy. Colonel Scott 
forthwith ordered a charge. The first attempt to scale 
the bank was unsuccessful ; on the second, the men 
clambered up in spite of resistance, — Scott himself 
being among the foremost, and knocking up the British 
bayonets with his sword. The enemy retired a short 
distance, and stoutly maintained the ground for twenty 
minutes ; but on the arrival of Colonel Porter and Gen- 
eral Boyd, with their commands, portions of which par- 
ticipated in the skirmish near its close, they commenced 
retreating in haste, in the direction of Queenston, — 
having already laid trains to their different magazines. 
Scott pushed his column after them, without delay, 
and, at the village of Niagara, was joined by the 6th 
infantry, under Colonel Miller. 

On approaching Fort George, one of its magazines 
exploded. The sad calamity that befel the American 
troops at York, had produced its probably natural ef- 
fect ; and a similar mishap was the bete noire which 
they always dreaded throughout the early part of the 
campaign. Colonel Scott was struck by a piece of 
timber, thrown from the horse which he had borrowed 
from a British colonel taken prisoner, and considerably 
bruised ; but he sprang to his feet in an instant, and 
accompanied by a few equally brave spirits, forced the 



358 WINPIELD SCOTT. 

gate, and entered the fort.* Captains Hindman and 
Stockton extinguished the lighted matches, and Gen- 
eral Boyd and Colonel Scott made tlieir way to the 
flag staft'. The British standard soon fluttered in the 
wind, — Captain Hindman being the fortunate individual 
who first seized it, though the staff was cut down by 
Scott, — and the stars and stripes speedily rose in its 
place. 

Colonel Scott continued the pursuit for some distance 
beyond the fort, — Lieutenant Riddle, with his party, 
following the enemy almost to Queenston, and picking 
up a number of stragglers — but he was soon recalled 
by General Boyd, in conformity with the directions of 
Genera] Lewis, who had assumed the command on 
shore. With the return of tlie advanced corps, the 
battle terminated. The Americans had thirty-nine 
killed and one hundred and ten wounded in the at- 
tack : while the British lost one hundred and eiafht 
killed, and one hundred and sixty wounded,-^and 
there were one hundred and fifteen regulars, and five 
hundred militia, taken prisoners. 

After the loss of Fort George, General Vincent with- 
drew all his forces from the peninsula, including those 
previously stationed at Chippewa and Fort Erie, to 
Burlington Heights ; and the Americans established 
themselves in a solid manner on the Niai?ara frontier. 
This lodgment would undoubtedly have been perma- 
nent, had it not been for the inaction — the pest and 
bane of the northern army during the campaigns of 



* Close beliinJ Scott was Colonel Porter, who complained that the 
long legs of the former gave him an undue advantage. 



1 



EXPEDITION AGAINST DURLINGTON HEIGHTS. 359 

'12 and '13 — which characterized the subsequent ojsera- 
tions of our principal officers in that quarter. 

It has been said that the campaign of 1813 opened 
auspiciously. So, indeed, it did, — but it terminated in 
disaster and disgrace. The bold stroke of Lieutenant 
Colonel Harvey, which resulted in the capture of Gen- 
erals Chandler and Winder, on the tliird of June, and 
the defeat and surrender of Colonel Boerstler on the 
twenty-fourth of the same month, were, in themselves, 
affairs of no great importance ; or rather, they would 
not have been considered such, had they been relieved, 
as might, and should have been the case, by those suc- 
cesses which it was in the power of the American army 
to have achieved. Immediately after the surrender of 
Boerstler, General Dearborn was recalled, and subse- 
quently resigned his commission. General Boyd suc- 
ceeded to the command, during the summer, but the 
War Department refused to give him authority to act 
offensively ; consequently, he remained cooj>ed vip the 
whole season in Fort George, with four thousand 
men, when General Vincent had very little over two 
thousand. 

General Dearborn surrendered the command on the 
j fifteenth of July, and Colonel Scott then returned to 
I his duty in the line, and toolv charge of his regiment. 
' In September, an expedition was projected against 
; Burlington Heights, and he volunteered to command 
: the land troops. Embariving on board Commodore 
Chauncey's fleet, he proceeded to the Heights, but 
found neither enemy, nor stores, at that point. On his 
! return, he landed at York, burned the barraclcs and 
E storehouses, and brought off a large quantity of pro- 



360 WINPIELD SCOTT. 

visions, clothing, and ammunition, together with eleven 
armed boats and several pieces of cannon. 

Upon the resignation of General Dearborn, the com- 
mand of the army was given to General Wilkinson, 
under whose auspices the famous expedition down the 
St. Lawrence, in the fall of 1S13, was conducted. In 
the original arrangements of Wilkinson, Colonel Scott 
was to be left in command at Fort George, which had 
been considerably enlarged and strengthened after its 
occupation by the American troops. At the urgent 
request of the latter, who ardently desired to take part 
in the great movement of the campaign, his orders were 
made so far discretionary, that he was authorized to 
give up the fort to General McClure, of the New York 
militia, when it had been placed in a proper state of 
defence, provided it was net seriously t!n"eatened by 
the enemy. The works were soon completed, and the 
enemy retired to Burlington Heights, and afterwards 
concentrated at Kingston, which post they supposed to 
be threatened by General Wilkinson. On the thir- 
teenth of October, General McClure took charge of 
Fort George, and Colonel Scott proceeded with the 
regular troops, who had previousl3^ garrisoned the post, 
to the mouth of the Genesee river, where he expected 
to find transportation for his men. Disappointed in 
this, he marched his column, with all possible expedi- 
tion, to Utica, and then directed his course towards 
Sacketts Harbor. A short distance north of Utica, he 
met General Armstrong, the Secretary of War, who 
informed him that the expedition had already set out, 
but gave hiin permission to leave his command with 



SKIRMISH AT HOOPIIOLE CREEK. 361 

Major Hindman, and to join Wilkinson, in person, on 
the St. Lawrence, at whatever point he could. 

Thirsting for distinction, Scott eagerly availed him- 
self of the permission granted, and dashed off on horse- 
back, through the rain and mud. On the sixth of No- 
vember, he joined the army at Ogdensburgh, and 
accompanied General Brown in the descent of the 
river, with the flotilla, under the heavy fire of the 
British batteries at Prescott. Beinsr without a com- 
mand. Colonel jMacomb magnanimously surrendered to 
him one of his battalions, which he had reserved for 
himself in case the regiment was divided ; and, on the 
seventh instant, he was regularly assigned to the corps 
cf elite. He commanded the advanced guard during 
the subsequent movement of the army down the river, 
almost daily encountering and defeating large or small 
parties of the enemy. He was not concerned in the 
action on the eleventh of November ; but, on the fol- 
lowing day, he engaged a detachment of the enemy, 
under Colonel Dennis, about equal to his own command 
in numbers, at Hoophole Creek, near Cornwall, routed 
them with ease, captured a number of prisoners, and 
hotly pursued the remainder of the enemy till dark. 
The army now retired into winter quarters at French 
Mills, — the young and ambitious officers, like Brown 
and Macomb, Gaines and Scott, literally overcome 
with mortification and chagrin.* 

Not long after this memorable expedition terminated, 
Colonel Scott was relieved from duty, and made a visit 
to his friends in Virginia, and at the seat of govern- 
ment. By the direction of the president, he spent a 

* See Memoirs of Brown and Macomb, ante. 

16 



362 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

part of the winter at Albany, engaged in making 
preparations, in connection with Governor Tompkins, 
for the ensuing campaign. 

On the ninth of INIarch, 1814, when scarcely twenty- 
eight years of age. Colonel Scott was promoted to the 
rank of brigadier general, and immediately joined Gen- 
eral Brown, then moving with his column from Sack- 
etts Harbor to Buffalo. At the latter place, a camp of 
instruction was established by General Scott, — Gen- 
eral Brown leaving him temporarily in the command, 
while he returned for a few weeks to Sacketts Harbor, 
with authority to adopt such measures as he thought 
proper, to secure the efiicient discipline and instruction 
of the troops, preparatory to taking the field. 

New officers,— more active, more ambitious, and 
more enterprising, — were now at the head of affairs on 
the Niagara frontier. General Brown properly appre- 
ciated the skill and abilities of the talented Scott, and 
gave him almost unlimited power. The latter infused 
new spirit and energy into every corps belonging to the 
army ; superannuated, infirm, or incompetent officers, 
no matter how high in rank, were relieved from duty ; 
the strict rules of military discipline were rigidly en- 
forced ; and the whole command was daily paraded 
for instruction. All were drilled, from the highest to 
the lowest, officers as well as men, under the eye of 
Scott himself, — first in squads, then in companies, then 
in battalions, and, finally, carried through the evolutions 
of the line. The brilliant, but practical genius, of tlie 
youthful general, his unwearied efforts and exertions, 
accomplished wonders. When General Brown crossed 



CAMP OF INSTRUCTION AT BUFFALO. 363 

the Niagara on the third of July, he crossed it with an 
army of soldiers, not merely of men ! 

The fruits of the camp of instruction at Buffalo, es- 
tablished and directed by General Scott, were witnessed 
on the plains of Chippewa, — on the blood-stained heights 
of Niagara, — when " Greek met Greek," when steel 
clashed against steel, and the American soldiers stood 
firm and unflinching as the rocks beneath their feet. 
They may still be witnessed, in the wide-spread renown 
and eminent glory indissolubly connected with the 
achievements of the gallant army which Brown and 
Scott led out to battle, — in the noble deeds and feats of 
lofty daring, paralleled only on the brightest pages of 
by-gone martial story. 

The incidents of the campaign on the Niagara fron- 
tier, in the summer of 1814, have been so fully detailed 
in the memoir of General Brown,* that it seems unne- 
cessary to recapitulate them here. On the third of 
July, the American commander crossed the Niagara 
with his whole army, little more than three thousand 
strong, consisting of the regular brigades of Scott and 
Ripley, — the former leading the van, — and the militia 
under Porter. Fort Erie was reduced on the same day, 
and, immediately thereafter, he proceeded against the 
position of General Riall, at Chippewa. On the fourth 
of July, General Scott had a running figlit for more 
than sixteen miles, with the 100th British foot, under 
the command of the Marquis of Tvveedale, whom he 
drove at full speed across the Chippewa. 

On the fifth of July, the battle of Chippewa was 
fought, — mainly by the first brigade, under General 

* Anie, p. 34, et seq. 



364 WINFIELD SCOTT, 

Scott. " To him more than any other man," said 
General Brown, in his official dispatch, " am I indebted 
for the victory." This was high praise ; but it was 
well deserved by the personal intrepidity, the chivalric 
bearing, and the dashing and dazzling manceuvres, 
which decided the result of the action. The day had 
opened with skirmishes of light troops, but the main 
action was brought on about four o'clock in the after- 
noon, when Scott dashed across Street's creek, and en- 
gaged the British army on the plain south of the Chip- 
pewa. The light troops on the left of the field were 
in the meantime warmly engaged, but the principal 
struggle took place in the open field, which was as 
brief as it was decisive. 

Scott's brigade numbered onlv about fourteen hundred 
men, consisting of three small battalions, and the bat- 
tery of Captain Towson. After crossing Street's creek, 
he continued alternately to advance, halt, and fire, till 
he was not more than eighty yards from the enemy's 
line. It being evident that preparations were making 
to outflank him, he detached one of his battalions into 
the woods on his left, to protect that flank. With the 
remainder of his small force, he prepared to meet the 
enemy, who were making ready to charge, — their ar- 
tillery having been already silenced. Spurring his 
horse through the dust and smoke, he dashed up to the 
side of Captain Towson, who was posted on the Chip- 
pewa road, on the right of the field, and directed him 
to maintain his ground, and pour a raking fire into the 
British columns as they came up. 

This order being given, he returned to his place in 
the rear of his two infantrv battalions. He now di- 



BATTLE OF CHIPPEAVA. 365 

reefed them to throw forward their outer flanks, so as 
to form a reenterins^ ansfle, but takinsr care to flank 
the enemy on the left.* The two battalions did not 
touch each other ; but the interval would be every 
instant lessened by the movement which he contem- 
plated. Having given the necessary orders, he cried 
out to the battalion of Major McNeil — the 11th in- 
fantry, which had not a recruit in it — on the left, — 
" The enemy say we are good at long shot, but cannot 
stand the cold iron I I call upon the Eleventh instantly 
to give the lie to that slander !" — " Charge !" he added, 
as the shot from Towson's guns ploughed through and 
through the British ranks. " Charare ! — Charsfe I" he 
repeated in thundering tones, rising up in his stirrups, 
and waving his men on with his sword. 

This masterly charge, so well conceived and executed, 
put an end to the contest. The front lines of the enemy 
staggered, and rolled back in a confused mass on the 
reserve. Ail caught the infection of defeat, and the 
slope leading down to the Chippewa was soon darkened 
by a cloud of fugitives. The pursuit was ordered, but 
was checked when the Americans reached the stream, 
by the hostile batteries that frowned on the opposite 
shore. 

The bloody battle on the heights of Niagara followed, 
on the night of the twenty-fifth of July.t General 
Scott opened the action with his brigade, and for nearly 
two hours gallantly sustained himself against the vastly 
superior numbers of the British army. When the en- 

* Captain Towson, with his three guns, was on the other flank, oppo- 
site the enemy's left, 
t Ante, p. 45, et seq. 



366 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

emy's batteries were ordered to be stormed, he piloted 
Colonel Miller, who was directed to execute this daring 
enterprise with the 2lst infantry, through the smoke 
and darkness, and the iron shower that swept unceas- 
ingly down the hill-side. Twice, during the height of 
the engagement, after being relieved by the troops under 
Ripley and Porter, Scott precipitated his brigade on the 
British left and right. Two horses were shot under 
him — one literally torn from its rider. Though badly 
wounded in the side by a spent ball, he persisted in re- 
maining on the ground, wading on foot through the 
blood and carnage, and his clear ringing voice ever and 
anon heard above the roar of artillery, as he cheered 
and encouraged his men. At length, about eleven 
o'clock, he was finally disabled by a musket ball, which 
shattered his left shoulder ; and at midnight, just as 
the battle closed, he was borne from the field, with his 
aid, Lieutenant Worth, also severely wounded. 

For more than a month it was extremely doubtful 
whether General Scott would recover from his wounds. 
Kind friends were not wantmg, to provide for the com- 
fort, and to soften the pillow, of the gallant soldier. 
He remained for several weeks, — suffering, in the 
meantime, great pain, — at Buffalo, Williamsville, and 
Batavia, and was thence borne, in a litter, to Geneva, 
to the house of his friend, the Hon. John Nicholas. As 
soon as he became able to travel, he proceeded to Phil- 
adelphia and Baltimore, in order to procure the best 
surgical and medical aid in the country. His journey 
was like the triumphal march of a conqueror. Passing 
through Prmceton on commencement day, he was 
waited on by a committee of the faculty of the Col- 



COMPLIMENTARY RESOLUTIONS. 367 

lege of New Jersey, who requested his presence at the 
exercises. He complied with the invitation, and was 
received by the large audience assembled, with the 
most rapturous demonstrations of applause. Before he 
left Princeton, he was also complimented with the 
honorary degree of JMaster of Arts, bestowed upon him 
by the authorities of the College. As he approached 
Philadelphia, he was met by Governor Snyder at the 
head of a division of militia, who formed his escort into 
the town. 

Being incapacitated by his wounds, which were a 
long time in healing, from any active duty. General 
Scott was prevailed upon, at the instance of the con- 
gressional delegations from Maryland and Pennsylvania, 
to take the nominal command of the troops collected 
for the defence of Baltimore and Philadelphia. On the 
sixteenth of October, 1814, he entered upon the duties 
of commanding officer of the tenth military district, — 
Ills headquarters being at Washington city. 

On the third day of November, 1814, Congress 
passed a resolution of thanks, complimenting General 
Scott for his skill and gallantry at Chippewa and Ni- 
agara, and for his uniform good conduct " in sustain- 
ing the reputation of the arms of the United States." 
A massive gold medal was also struck and presented to 
him, by order of Congress, and he was breveted a 
major general. Resolutions of thanks were likewise 
adopted by the Legislatures of New York and Vir- 
ginia, and splendid swordi? publicly presented to him, 
in accordance with their directions. He was further 
honored, by being chosen an honorary member of the 



368 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

State Society of Cincinnati in Pennsylvania, in the 
year 1815. 

After the ratification of the treaty of peace, in Feb- 
ruary, 1815, General Scott was requested, temporarily, 
at least, to take charge of the War Department. This 
he declined, but solicited permission to travel in Eu- 
rope, for the restoration of his health and professional 
improvement. The request was granted without hes- 
itation. Having assisted in reducing the army to the 
peace establishment — being himself retained as one of 
the four brigadier generals — he embarked for England, 
and then crossed over to the Continent. While abroad, 
he was honored with the notice of Kosciusko, who gave 
him letters of introduction to the most distinguished 
marshals of France. He attended several courses of 
public lectures, in the most eminent literary institutions, 
and visited all the principal fortresses and naval estab- 
lishments in western Europe. He returned home in 
1816, fully restored in strength and spirits ; and in tlie 
same year was assigned to the command of the Eastern 
Division, with his headquarters at the city of New 
York.* 

In March, 1817, General Scott was married to Miss 
INIaria Mayo, a Virginia lady, distinguished alike for 
rare beauty and accomplishments. By her he has had 
several daughters, but no livuig son. 

Shortly after his marriage, General Scott purchased 
a residence in the village of Elizabethtown, New Jer- 
sey, which he still regards as his -home. For nearly 

* He visited Europe again in 1829, and made the tour of France, 
Belgium and Germany — his principal object being to procure profes- 
fiional information. 



PUBLICATIONS ON MILITARY SUBJECTS. 369 

twenty-five years, from the fall of 1816 to the summer 
of 1841, with brief intervals, he was continued in com- 
mand of the Eastern Division, and his family, durinj^ 
that period and since, have spent most of their time at 
Elizabeth town. 

The commanding talents, and extensive military in- 
formation of General Scott — his whole life having been 
spent in storing up valuable knowledge in every de- 
partment of science connected with his profession — 
have been of vast service to his country, even in time 
of peace. In 1821, he published an octavo volume, en- 
titled " General Regulations for the Army, or Military 
Institutes," — a complete manual for both regular and 
militia officers. In the winter of 1814—15, he was 
president of a board appointed to prepare a system of 
infantry tactics, similar to that taught in the camp of 
instruction at Buffalo, which was afterwards revised by 
another board, of which he was also president, and 
published in 1825. In 1826, he presided over another 
board, composed of regular officers and militia gen- 
erals, ordered to convene by the War Department, and 
to report — 1. A plan for the organization and instruc- 
tion of the whole body of the militia of the Union — 
2. A system of tactics for the artillery — 3. A system 
of cavalry tactics — and 4. A system of infantry and 
rifle tactics. 

The reports made by the board, on the first and fourth 
subjects, were prepared exclusively by General Scott, 
and reflect high credit on his military knowledge and 
abilities. They were published for the use of the army, 
and the information of the country ; and in 1835, under 
a resolution of Congress, he prepared a new edition of 

16* 



370 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

his system of Infantry Tactics, in three small volumes, 
containing all tlie improvements made subsequent to the 
general peace of 1815. 

On the death of General Brown, in February, 1828, 
General Scott was a candidate for the vacant office of 
General-in-Chief. His claims were founded, mainly, 
on the fact, that his commission as a brevet major gen- 
eral, which bore date July 25, 1814, was older than 
that of Macomb or Gaines, both of whom were candi- 
dates for the same station. It was decided, however, 
by President Adams, and, subsequently, by President 
Jackson, that brevet rank was merely honorary in its 
character ; and the appointment was therefore conferred 
on General Macomb, the oldest brigadier.* Pending 
the decision of this question, a warm personal contro- 
versy sprung up between the different parties concerned, 
in regard to brevet rank ; and on the decision of the 
government being made known. General Scott tendered 
his resignation. Under the advice of his friends, he 
afterwards reconsidered this hasty step, withdrew his 
resignation, and resumed the command of the Eastern 
Division. 

On the fourth of July, 1831, the melancholy duty 
devolved upon General Scott, of closing the eyes of his 
esteemed and venerable I'rienci, Ex-President Monroe, 
who expired at the city of New York on that day. 

In the summer of 1832, General Scott was ordered 
to assume the command of the troops sent to suppress 
the disturbance with tiie Sacs and Foxes, under Black 
Hawk, on the Illinois frontier.! He embarked at Buf- 

* See Memoirs of Generals Gaines and Macomb, ante. 
t See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 



WAR WITH THE SACS AND FOXES. 871 

falo, in July, on board a steamer, with two hundred 
and twenty men ; Colonel Twiggs proceeding on 
another vessel, with a detachment of four hundred ; 
and a third detachment, of over three hundred men, 
taking still another vessel. Bunches of cypress, rather 
than wreaths of laurel, were the trophies of this expe- 
dition. On the route to Chicago, the command was 
overtaken by that terrible scourge, the Asiatic Cholera. 
More than one half of the men composing the detach- 
ments died of the disease, or were left in hospital. 
General Scott paid every necessary attention to the 
wants of his soldiers ; nurses and medical attendants, 
suitable food and clothing, were provided ; and every- 
thing in his power was done, that could assuage the 
sufferings of disease,- or the pangs of death. After a' 
long delay, he left Chicago, at the head of only four 
hundred men. With these he pushed forward as rapidly 
as possible, but did not come up with General Atkin- 
son, the officer in command of the troops then operating 
in that quarter, till the third of August, the day after 
the battle of the Bad-Axe, which put a finishing stroke 
to the war. On the twenty-seveiith instant, Black 
Hawk surrendered himself to the American officers, 
and in September following, advantageous treaties 
were concluded with the Sacs and Foxes, and the 
Winnebagoes, by General Scott, and Governor Rey- 
nolds, of Illinois. 

During the agitation of the nullification question, 
when a conflict was daily expected to take place be- 
tween South Carolina and the General Government, 
General Scott was ordered to Charleston and Savannah, 
to take command of the regular troops in that section, 



372 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

if a collision should become unavoidable. His firmness, 
and manly and dignified conduct, were productive of 
the happiest results. The state receded from her po- 
sition, and the angry waters which discord had lashed 
into fury, were hushed and stilled by the blessed influ- 
ence of Peace. 

Osceola, or Asceolah, " the black drink," — as the 
name signifies, — and the hostile Seminoles of Florida 
under his command, commenced their depredations in 
the summer of 1835, and in the autumn the everglades 
resounded with their shrill war-whoop. On the twenty- 
eighth of Decetnber, Major Dade and his command v^re 
attacked and massacred, when on the march from Fort 
Brooke, and General Thompson, the Indian agent, and 
several companions vrere waylaid and killed, in sight 
of Fort King. On the thirty-first instant. General 
Clinch encountered the savages, under Osceola, on the 
banks of the Withlacoochee, and after a severe action, 
though of brief duration, put them to flight. 

Immediately on the receipt of the intelligence of this 
outbreak, General Scott was ordered to take command 
of the army in Florida. At four o'clock in the afternoon 
of the twentieth of January, 1S36, he reported to the 
Secretary of War, and was asked when he could set 
out ? " To night !" he replied promptly. His instruc- 
tions, however, could not be prepared until the follow- 
ing day ; and, on the twenty-first instant, he left 
Washington, travelling night and day until he reached 
Florida. On the twenty-second of February, he ar- 
rived at Picolata, and issued his orders forming the 
army into three divisions.— Previous to this time. Gen- 
eral Gaines had repaired to the seat of war and com- 



THE FLORIDA WAR. 373 

menced offensive operations ; but he now surrendered 
the command to General Seottf — The troops on the 
west of the St. John's were placed under General 
Clinch; those on the east of the river under General 
Eustis ; and those at Tampa Bay under Colonel Lind- 
bay. The three divisions then moved towards the 
Withlacoochee, where they met, in M'hat was sup- 
posed, with good reason — as this had been the theatre 
of the disturbances — to be the heart of the Indian 
country ; but they failed to discover the retreats of 
the savages. 

The object of this expedition not having been attained, 
another movement was ordered. Six different corps 
were organized, with which the whole country, be- 
tween the twenty-eighth and tliirticth degrees of north 
latitude, was effectually scoured. One of tliese detach- 
ments was led by General Scott in person. Passing 
the scene of the massacre on the twenty-eighth of De- 
cember, he crossed the Ocklewaha, and ascended the 
St. John's from Volusia, in a steamboat. Still the 
•Indians could not be discovered, in any large bodies, 
though very small parties were occasionally seen, with 
whom the troops had several skirmishes. The soldiers 
had suflered considerably by their long and fatiguing 
marches through the sickly and malarious swamps in 
the interior, the deadly exhalations of which brought 
on severe diseases, and filled the hospitals with the 
sick and suffering. It was now rendered certain that 
the savages had retired among the dense live oak and 
cypress forests, and the marshy hummocks, in the 
southern part of the peninsula. To follow them, at 

* See Memoir of General Gaines, ante. 



374 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

that time, was out of the question ; and General Scott 
decided to suspend his operations' until another cam- 
paign. He then repaired to the Creek country, in 
Georgia and Alabama, where a number of outrages 
had recently been committed. Here he had fewer dif- 
ficulties of climate or country to contend with. He 
arrived in Georgia, in May, and in less than one 
month, nearly five hundred of the refractory Creeks 
had surrendered themselves. 

While General Scott was actively engaged in the 
discharge of his duties in tlie Creek country, he was 
unexpectedly recalled, and, on the ninth of July, gave 
up the command to General Jesup. It being evident 
that he labored under the displeasure of the Executive, 
General Jackson, he demanded a court of inquiry, on 
his arrival at Washington. The court assembled at 
Frederick, Maryland, in October, and after a long and 
tedious investigation, fully approved of Jiis conduct. 
The finding of the court was sustained by the then 
president, Mr. Van Buren, and General Scott soon 
after returned to the command of the Eastern Divi- 
sion. He requested- permission to be again sent to 
Florida, but as the war was at that time being prose- 
cuted by other officers, it was not thought advisable to 
comply with his request, and thus disturb the arrange- 
ments which had been made subsequent to his recall. 

In the winter of 1837-8, General Scott rendered ef- 
ficient services in the preservation of neutrality on the 
northern frontier, and in preventing the war which 
threatened to grow out of tlie outbreak in Canada, and 
what was called " the patriot excitement." No collision 
took place with the British forces, although General 



THE NORTH EASTERN BOUNDARY. 375 

Scott was fully prepared for such an emergency. In 
the summer of 1838, he was ordered to take command 
of the troops in the Cherokee country, — in Georgia, Al- 
abama, North Carolina, and Tennessee, — and to super- 
intend the removal of the Indians west of the Missis- 
sippi. This duty was discharged with so much prompt- 
itude and humanity, that he received the grateful 
thanks of the Cherokees, as well as the express appro- 
bation of his own government. 

Having terminated his mission among the Cherokees, 
General Scott hastened to the north, where his almost 
unbounded popularity had produced such a favorable 
result the previous year, to take command of the troops 
ordered to preserve the integrity of the territory of 
Maine, a large part of which had long been in dispute, 
and the subject of negotiation, between the govern- 
ments of Ens-land and the United States. He found 
in Sir John Harvey, the lieutenant governor of New 
Brunswick — in the campaign of 1813, Lieutenant 
Colonel Harvey — an old acquaintance, whom he had 
known during the late war with England. The former 
discovered that the militia of Maine were too numerous, 
and too well disposed, to be attacked by his inferior 
force, and he readily met the friendly, but dignified ad- 
vances, of General Scott, in a similar spirit. A cessa- 
tion of all hostile movements and operations, was mu- 
tually agreed on between them, — which received the 
approval of the Governor of Maine, the American Ex- 
ecutive, and the British Minister. The dis]iuted bound- 
ary was finally adjusted, under the Treaty of Wash- 
ington, concluded in 1842. 

Though taking no active part in the political con- 



376 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

tests of the day, and never solicitous to venture in 
" the fiery chase of ambition," the opinions of General 
Scott on all leading questions, were so v^^ell known to 
coincide with those of the Whig party, that he was 
warmly supported as a candidate for the presidency, at 
their National Convention, held at Harrisburg, in De- 
cember, 1839. He received sixty-two votes, on the 
last ballot but one ; the choice of the convention, how- 
ever, fell on General Harrison, who was elected to the 
office in the autumn of 1840. In the summer of 1848, 
General Scott was again proposed as a candidate for 
the same high station, by his numerous friends in dif- 
ferent sections of the Union, and received a highly flat- 
tering vote in the Whig National Convention, which 
met at Philadelphia in the month of June, — though 
the nomination was conferred on General Taylor, also 
a distinguished officer of the army. 

General Macomb, the commanding general, died at 
Washington on the twenty-fifth of June, 1841, and 
General Scott, to the universal satisfaction of the Amer- 
ican people, was elevated to the head of the army, with 
the full rank of major general. The services performed 
by him in this capacity Vv'ere chiefly those of a cabinet 
officer, and nothing more need be said of them, than 
that they were faithfully and appropriately rendered. 

We now approach the most brilliant epoch in the 
military history of General Scott, — his splendid cam- 
paign amid the burning sands and lofty mountains of 
Mexico — the land of the citron and the orange, of the 
fragrant acacia and the s])reading banana ; whose val- 
leys teem with the glowing vegetation of an unending 



THE WAR WITH MEXICO. 377 

summer, and whose hill-tops are covered with eternal 
snow ; 

" where the stars, 
In tropic brightness gleam," — 

and the overhanging rocks and rough buttresses of the 
sierras, intrenched by the " deep scars of thunder," look 
down upon sweet Paphian bowers, blooming with the 
fragrant shrubs and flowers whose soft intoxicating 
odors lull the senses to repose, and bright with the 
plumage of the parrot and mocking bird, and the scar- 
let and purple blossoms of innumerable creepers, twin- 
ing about the columnar stems of the tulip tree, or de- 
pending in heavy festoons from the graceful palm. 
Like the Alpine scenery, to which the reviewer* com- 
pares the poetry of Milton, " Nooks and dells, beautiful 
as fairy land, are imbosomed in its most rugged eleva- 
tions. The roses and the myrtle bloom unchilled on 
the verge of the avalanche I" 

Repeated insults and outrages, for a long series of 
years, were heaped upon the American people and the 
American flag, by the authorities of INIexico. Her 
weakness, and her position as one of the family of re- 
publics on the Western Continent, alone shielded her 
from attack. Injuries perpetrated by her were tolera- 
ted, which, had they been committed by a monarchical 
power, would have been promptly redressed. At length, 
after the annexation of Texas to the United States — 
the citizens of which had revolted from her authority 
and achieved their independence — on the twenty-fourth 
of April, 1846, a body of JMexican lancers committed 
an unprovoked attack upon a small party of American 

* Macaulay. 



378 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

troops, on the left bank of the Rio Grande, and within 
what was claimed to be the territory of the State of 
Texas. The Congress of the United States was at this 
time in session, and on receiving official intelligence of 
the transaction, an act was passed, with great una- 
nimity, declaring that a state of war existed between 
the two countries " by the act of the republic of INIex- 
ico." Provision was made for filling up the regular 
regiments, the President was authorized to accept the 
services of fifty thousand volunteers, and the sum of 
ten millions of dollars was appropriated to carry on 
the war. 

Consultations were immediately held between the 
President, the Secretary of War, and General Scott ; 
and the various staflf officers and heads of bureaus were 
directed to prepare estimates, and furnish the materiel 
for the large army about to be called into the field. It 
was originally intended that General Scott, whose abil- 
ities as a skilful and scientific officer were admitted to 
be unequalled in the American service, should proceed 
to the seat of war and assume the chief command. 
An unfortunate misunderstanding, however, occurred 
between him and the Executive, and he was directed 
to remain at Washington. During the summer of 
1846, nearly twenty thousand men were thrown for- 
ward. General Taylor, the officer commanding on the 
Rio Grande, was largely reinforced, and strong columns 
of attack were directed upon Chihuahua and New 
Mexico, under Generals Wool and Kearny. Previous 
to this. General Taylor had driven the Mexicans from 
the left bank of the Rio Grande, by a series of brilliant 
victories, and taken possession of Matamoras. On the 



EXPEDITION AGAINST VERA CRUZ. 379 

arrival of reinforcements and supplies, he proceeded 
against Monterey, the capital of New Leon, where the 
shattered columns of the enemy had rallied ; and after 
a stout resistance, this town also surrendered to his 
arms, on the twenty-fourth of September, 

Before the close of the campaign, most of the 
northern provinces of Mexico had been overrun, or oc- 
cupied, by the American troops. Victory everywhere 
perched on our banners. Still, the enemy made no 
propositions for peace. Artful demagogues, availing 
themselves of the dissensions which they had fomented 
among the Mexican people, had obtained the control of 
affairs ; and they hoped to preserve their influence and 
authority, only by the successful prosecution of hostil- 
ities. It was therefore determined to land a strong and 
well-appointed column at Vera Cruz, and after redu- 
cing the formidable castle of San Juan de Ulua — the 
Gibraltar of America — to march upon the Mexican 
capital. This service demanded the highest military 
talents in the Nation, and, in accordance with the gen- 
eral desire, the hero of Chippewa and Niagara was se- 
lected to lead the American armies to victory and 
triumph. 

The expedition against Vera Cruz and San Juan de 
Ulua, was planned by General Scott ; great pains had 
been taken to procure the necessary information in re- 
gard to the defences of the city and castle ; and he was 
engaged for several weeks in making the necessary 
preparations. A corps of sappers and miners, moun- 
tain howitzer and rocket batteries, heavy ordnance, 
large quantities of missiles and ammunition, transport 
vessels, bomb-ketches, and surf-boats, to land the troops, 



880 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

were ordered to be organized and prepared, and dis- 
patched to the Gulf of Mexico without delay. The 
troops destined to take part in the expedition, who were 
to proceed from the United States, were ordered to ren- 
dezvous at the island of Lobos, lying just off the Mex- 
ican shore, about one hundred and twenty miles north- 
west of Vera Cruz — a lovely perfumed island, hanging 
suspended in the waters like a basket of flowers. The 
remainder of the force was to be withdrawn from the 
army under General Taylor, and to embark for the 
same point, at Tampico, or the Brazos. 

General Scott received his final orders on the twenty- 
third of November, 1846, and on the twenty-fourth 
left Washington for New York, where he embarked for 
New Orleans. From thence he proceeded to the Rio 
Grande, and, having selected the troops to compose his 
column, repaired to the general rendezvous. 

It was late in the month of February, 1847, before 
all the troops reached the island of Lobos ; the arrange- 
ments were then speedily completed ; and just before 
nightfall on the fifth of March, the whole fleet came 
bearing down into the roadstead of Vera Cruz, under 
a full press of canvas, and blocking up the bay with a 
dense forest of masts and spars. The American naval 
squadron, under Commodore Conner, previously em- 
ployed in blockading the Mexican ports, was present to 
cooperate in the expedition. Careful reconnaissances 
of the enemy's coast were immediately made by the 
Commodore and General Scott, and the debarkation 
was ordered to take place on the ninth of March, oppo- 
site the island of Sacrificios, between four and five 
miles south of the city of Vera Cruz. The surf-boats, 



LANDING OP THE TROOPS, 



881 



sixty-five in number, were properly marked, and the 
troops arranged in divisions, and transferred from the 
transports to the vessels of war, so as not to crowd the 
contracted anchorage with too many sail. 

At eleven o'clock in the morning of the ninth, the 
squadron weighed anchor, and at three in the afternoon 
hove to abreast of Sacrificios. The arrangements of 
Commodore Conner and General Scott were all perfect ; 
nothing was amiss or in confusion ; and not a single 
accident occurred to interrupt the movement. The 
small boats, which had been towed astern of the larger 
vessels, were ranged alongside, manned by the sailors, 
and received their complements of men, all fully armed 
and equipped, and their bright muskets and bayonets 
glistening with sunbeams. The steamers Spitfire and 
Vixen, with five gun boats, then formed a line parallel 
with the beach, within good grape range, to cover the 
descent. The regular brigade of General Worth, was 
the first to land. As the signal gun fired from the 
Massachusetts boomed over the waters, the line of 
boats darted for the shore. 

The day was highly favorable for the landing. It 
was bright and clear, and a soft southeasterly breeze, 
fresh from groves of balm and forests of citrori trees, 
just rippled the surface of the bay, and died away in 
gentle murmurs on the sandy beach. The harbor was 
crowded with American, and foreign vessels of war ; 
and every deck, mast and spar, were alive with anxious 
spectators. But a few moments elapsed ere the boats 
reached the shore, and the American flag was unfurled 
amid the joyous shouts and loud hurrahs of the brave 
tars and gallant soldiers. The remainder of the troops 



382 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

— the volunteer division of General Patterson, and the 
regular brigade of General Twiggs — numbering, in all, 
between ten and eleven thousand men, were landed by 
the surf-boats, in successive trips, before ten o'clock in 
the evening. 

No attempt was made by the enemy to oppose the 
disembarkation of General Scott's army. There were 
between six and seven thousand men in the city and 
castle, all under the command of General Morales, 
Governor of the State of Vera Cruz ; but that officer 
contented himself with remaining in security behind 
his defences, which he might well have deemed almost 
impregnable. The city was entirely surrounded by a 
stone wall, with towers at irregular intervals,— the two 
most important ones, the Santiago and the Conception, 
being on the water-front, twelve hundred and seventy 
yards distant from each other. The castle of San Juan 
de Ulua, the reduction of which was the great object of 
the expedition, stood on a bar, or small island, in front 
of the town, one thousand and sixty-two yards from the 
main land. The armament of the castle was very 
heavy ; it contamed about one hundred and fifty guns, 
of different calibre ; and there were over one hundred 
guns mounted upon the fortifications of the city.' In 
the rear of the town was a wide stretch of country, 
dotted here and there with thickets of chaparral, origi- 
nally a level plain ; but the loose sand had been drifted 
into hillocks, from twenty to two hundred and fifty feet 
high, by the perpetual blowing of the fierce nortcs. 

General Scott landed on the morning of the tenth of 
March, and made immediate preparations to invest the 
town. He had rendered himself familiar with the to- 



LINE OF INVESTMENT. 383 

pography of the country, and his columns moved as 
regularly to their positions, as if they had been on 
parade ; General Worth occupying the right of the line 
with his command. General Patterson the centre, and 
General Twiggs the extreme left. Though half blinded 
by the whirling sand, the men cheerfully mounted over 
the clumps and ridges, dragging after them their bag- 
gage, tents, and artillery, and entirely indifferent to the 
fire of the enemy's guns, which kept up a continued 
and incessant roar. Several slight skirmishes occurred, 
but the Mexicans appeared nowhere in force outside 
their strong fortifications, frowning with cannon, and 
bristling with bayonets. The investment was com- 
pleted on the thirteenth of March, and on the same 
day safeguards were sent to the foreign consuls in the 
town. The whole line, extending from the beach op- 
posite Sacrificios, to the hamlet of Vergara, on the 
coast north of Vera Cruz, was about seven miles in 
length, with an interval of from two and a half to three 
miles between it and the city. 

The plan of attack fixed upon by General Scott, 
was, in the first place, to compel the city to surrender, 
and then to take up battering positions near it, and 
assault the castle. A succession of severe northers 
cut off all communication with the fleet for several 
days, and prevented the landing of the mortars and 
heavy guns ; but in the afternoon of the twenty-second 
of March, three batteries were finally established, within 
eight hundred yards of the city, under the direction of 
Colonel Totten, the Chief Engineer, and .seven mortars 
planted. The city was then regularly summoned ; but 
Governor Morales affected to regard the castle as being 



384 



WINFIELD SCOTT. 



emhraced in the demand, and peremptorily refused to 
capitulate. Orders were therefore given to open the 
fire, and the squadron, under Commodore Perry, who 
had relieved Commodore Conner, moved up to prevent 
any further intercourse between the town and the 
foreign vessels of war. The command of the trenches 
was assigned to Colonel Bankhead, of the 2nd artil- 
lery ; and shortly after four o'clock on the afternoon 
of the twenty-second, the three batteries commenced 
bombarding the town. A strong battery, manned by 
officers and men of the navy, and mounting three 
8-inch Paixhan guns, and three long thirty-two's, opened 
its fire on the following day ; and early in the mornino 
of the twenty-fifth, a fifth battery, with four 24-pounders 
and two S-inch howitzers, added its deep-toned thunders 
to the ceaseless din. The enemy returned the fire, 
with considerable spirit, from their batteries in the city 
and castle ; but little injury was done to the trenches, 
and the Americans sustained but a trifling loss. 

In the city, the horrors of a bombardment were soon 
witnessed. The American fire was terribly destructive. 
Deep channels were ploughed in the streets, and the 
walls sunk in large masses. The air was full of blaz- 
ing shells ; houses were set on fire, and the affrighted 
inmates fled hither and thither, seeking, in vain, some 
place of refuge and safety. The city resounded, in 
every quarter, with the groans of the dying, the shrieks 
of pale-faced women and orphaned children. On the 
night of the twenty-fourth, the foreign consuls dispatched 
a memorial to General Scott, praying him to grant a 
truce to enable the neutrals to withdraw, with the 
Mexican women and children. All the terrors which 



THE BOMBARDMENT AND CAPITULATION. 385 

they depicted, had been foreseen by the American com- 
mander, and they had been forewarned in time. They 
had chosen to remain in the city till it was too late. 
There could now be no alternative but a surrender. 
The request of the memorialists was therefore refused, 
and the siege pressed with increased vigor. 

The firing was continued without intermission during 
the day, on the twenty-fifth, and the following night. 
Governor Morales resisted every appeal on the part of 
the inhabitants of Vera Cruz, to surrender, and it was 
only when the streets had become deluged with blood, 
that he resigned the command to General Landero, who 
immediately opened negotiations with General Scott, 
which terminated in the capitulation of the city and 
castle, with their armaments, and the surrender of the 
garrison as prisoners of war. The American batteries 
ceased playing on the morning of the twenty-sixth ; 
and on the twenty-ninth, the Mexican troops marched 
out and lay down their arms, while the victors entered 
and took possession of the formidable strongholds which 
they had evacuated. 

There were but thirteen killed, and sixty-three 
wounded, on the side of the Americans, including the 
losses sustained by the navy, during the operations be- 
fore the city of Vera Cruz, from the landing to the 
capitulation ; except that there were a few casualties 
occurred on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth of 
March, in brief skirmishes with mounted parties of the 
enemy, who made their appearance in the rear of the 
line of investment, but were driven off by detachments 
under the command, respectively, of General P. F. 
Smith and Colonel Harney. The loss of the Mexicans 

17 



386 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

during the siege was not ascertained, but was variously- 
estimated at from one to two thousand. 

Anticipating the speedy arrival of the dreaded 
vomito on the low and sickly coast of Mexico, General 
Scott hastened to put his army in motion for the in- 
terior, hoping to find among the cool retreats of the 
terra templada^ a refuge from the scorching sun of the 
tropics. Lieutenant Colonel Belton, of the 3rd artil- 
lery, was left in command of Vera Cruz and the Castle, 
with a suitable garrison ; and, on the eighth of April, 
General Twiggs took up the line of march for Jalapa, 
about ninety miles distant. The remaining columns 
followed in a few days. 

Meanwhile, Santa Anna, the Provisional President 
of Mexico, and Gencral-in-ohief of her armies, had 
sustained a terrible repulse near Buena Vista, on the 
twenty-third of February, when he had attacked the 
American army under General Taylor, with a force 
four times greater than that of his opponents. Escap- 
ing from the scene of disaster, with the wreck of his 
forces, — as the Americans did not design to penetrate 
further into the country in that direction, — and aug- 
menting their numbers by forced levies, together with 
large additions from the National Guard, and consider- 
able bodies of guerillereros, he proceeded to the heights 
of Cerro Gordo, nearly thirty miles east of Jalapa, 
and commenced fortifying his position. The National 
Road, along which the victorious columns of General 
Scott were approaching, here commences the ascent 
from the tierra caliente, to the elevated table land of 
Mexico. 

After crossing Ihe Rio del Plan, the road winds uj) 



THE HEIGHTS OF CERRO GORDO. 387 

among the hills — now scaling a bold sierra, and now 
disappearing in the wooded depths of some dark ravine 
— until, at the distance of two or three miles, it enters 
a narrow defile, flanked, on the left, by three ridges 
jutting out from the plateau above, — beyond which is 
the impassable channel of the river, — and, on the right, 
by the tall mountain peak of Cerro Gordo, crowned 
with the Telegrafo^ a fortified citadel, or tower. In- 
trenchments were thrown up on the eastern extremities 
of the hills on the left, which terminated abruptly, and 
upwards of twenty guns placed in battery. In addition 
to the work on the lofty summit of Cerro Gordo, which 
contained six guns mounted on carriages, there was a 
strong battery, of six large brass guns, at the foot of 
the height, which completely enfiladed the defile. 
Breastworks for the protection of infantry were con- 
structed in and about this chain of defences, within 
which Santa Anna posted about one half of his army, 
altogether consistinsr of not far from fifteen thousand 
men. With the remaining half, he encamped on the 
National Road, about half a mile west of the tower, 
where he had, also, a battery of five guns. 

The march of the American army from Vera Cruz 
to the Rio del Plan was entirely unobstructed, — though, 
on account of the deep sandy roads, very tedious and 
difficult. For most of the distance, the wayside was 
skirted with thickets of chaparral, with occasional 
openings, through which glimpses could be caught of 
plantations of maguey, whose bright clustering flowers 
shed their rich golden radiance on everything around ; 
of waving fields of corn and sugar cane ; of groves of 
citrons, oranges, and pomegranates, — ^the trees bending 



388 ■\VINFIELD SCOTT. 

down with their luscious fruit, or loaded with rare 
foliage ; or of sylvan nooks, where the waters of some 
gentle streamlet trembled in the faint light stealing 
softly down through the overhanging branches of the 
majestic plane-tree, the dark-leaved banana, the lofty 
cedar, or the gigantic arbutus. Now and then, too, 
they passed the rude sheds, covered with green pal- 
metto leaves, of the jarochada, — the humblest class 
of IMexican peasantry, — who looked upon the advent 
of these strange warriors, with emotions similar to those 
with which the ancient Aztecs regarded the mail-clad 
followers of Hernando Cortes. 

General Twiggs arrived at the Plan del Rio, on the 
eleventh of April, with his division, and encamped for 
the night ; his advanced guard, under Colonel Harney, 
having driven a party of JMexican lancers from the 
ground. On the following day reconnaissances were 
pushed in the direction of the enemy's position, which, 
it was ascertained, could be turned on the right, by the 
construction of a road leaving the main route some dis- 
tance below the defile, and winding round to the north 
of the heisrht of Cerro Gordo. The first and third 
brigades of General Patterson's volunteer division, 
commanded by Generals Pillow and Shields, came up 
on tiie twelfth instant ; the second brigade, under Gen- 
eral Quitman, did not arrive in time to take part in the 
action. General Scott soon followed, and, on the six- 
teenth of April, General Worth reached the ground 
with his division. Dispositions were forthwith made 
for carrying the whole Mexican line of intrenchments 
by assault. The operations on the line reconnoitred by 
General Twiggs, were pushed with great activity, and 



STORMING THE FORTIFICATIONS. 389 

a road was constructed, extending for two or three 
miles, through thickets of chaparral, underneath jutting 
precipices, and across deep stony chasms. The fatigue 
parties continued at work, until they came within range 
of the enemy's batteries, and orders were then issued 
to prepare for the storm. 

The division of General Twiggs was thrown forward 
on the new road, and in the afternoon of the seventeenth, 
his advanced parties seized a commanding eminence di- 
rectly below the frowning height of Cerro Gordo, upon 
which several heavy guns were planted, that were 
drawn up during the evening by the 4th artillery and 
the volunteers of General Shields, who had been di- 
rected to reinforce the regular division. The main 
attack was now ordered to. be made' at sunrise on the 
eighteenth of April ; General Twiggs being directed to 
carry the works on the right of the road, with his di- 
vision and the brigade of General Shields ; and Gen- 
eral Pillow receiving orders to attack the intrenchments 
on the series of hills on the left, aided by the fire of an 
8-inch howitzer put in position on the heights, on the 
opposite bank of the Rio del Plan. General Worth 
was required to follow the movement under General 
Twiggs with his division. 

With the first light of dawn, the command of Gen- 
eral Twiggs was in motion. The main height of Cerro 
Gordo, from the sides of which the enemy's skirmishers 
were driven by the fire of the mounted rifles, was gal- 
lantly ascended by the 1st artillery,* and the 3rd and 

* The artillery retriments in the Amcricsin sen'ice, are equipped, and 
act, as infantry, with the exception of the detached companies serving 
with batteries. 



390 ^vINFrELD scott. 

7th infantry, headed by Colonel Harney, under a 
plunging and withering lire of grape and musketry, 
and the fortiiied work on its summit carried at the 
point of the bayonet. General Shields crossed a ra- 
vine, hitherto deemed impassable, further to the west 
and right, with his brigade, and boldly attacked the 
battery in the rear near the principal camp of Santa 
Anna ; being desperately wounded, he gave up the 
command to Colonel Baker, who promptly led on the 
column, and, with the assistance of Colonel Riley, who 
moved up with the 2nd infantry and 4th artillery, suc- 
ceeded in carrying the battery and routing the main 
body of the enemy. The private carriage of the Mex- 
ican President, his baggage, and the military chest of 
the army, were captured ; but Santa Anna himself, 
and his principal ofhcers, succeeded in effecting their 
escape. 

General Pdlow was less successful in the attempt 
to carry the batteries and intrenchments on the left of 
the road. The fire of the enemy proved so destructive, 
that he was obliged to call off his men ; but, nothing 
daunted by one repulse, they were preparing for a 
second and more determined effort, when white flags 
were thrown out over the breastworks, — the Mexican 
force in this quarter being completely in the power of 
the American troops, who had carried the height of 
Cerro Gordo and the battery in. the rear. A large 
number of the enemy having escaped just previous to 
the capture of the works, the way was cleared, and the 
mounted men and light batteries, with portions of the 
infantry, dashed after them in pursuit, mider Generals 
Twiggs and Patterson. The intrenchments and forti- 



DEFEAT AND PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY. 391 

fications were all carried before the sun had reached its 
meridian, and at eventide the advanced corps halted 
and encamped within sight of the white towers of 
Jalapa. 

The American force in this action barely exceeded 
eight thousand men ; but the network of defences con- 
structed by Santa Anna to impede their advance, 
proved as frail and powerless as the gossamer's web. 
Yet the victory was not achieved without a severe loss ; 
there being four hundred and thirty-one officers and 
men killed and wounded. The Mexican loss, however, 
was much greater ; there were upwards of one thou- 
sand killed and wounded, and over three thousand taken 
prisoners, including five general officers. Forty-three 
pieces of artillery, four thousand stands of arms, and a 
large quantity of fixed ammunition, were also captured 
by the Americans. 

Jalapa surrendered to the victors on the nineteenth 
of April, and on the twenty-second General Worth 
took possession of the important castle of Perote. No 
resistance was now made to the arms of General Scott. 
Panic and dismay were visible on every side, and had 
the American commander been in a situation to advance 
immediately upon the IMexican capital, it is more than 
probable that he would have encountered but feeble op- 
position. But, when he arrived at Jalapa, the terms 
of service of more than three thousand of his volunteer 
force were about to expire ; and they returned at once 
to the coast, to re^mbark for the United States before 
the sickly season came on. Although his army was 
thereby reduced to less than seven thousand efl'ective 
men — a feeble band loft to maintain themselves in the 



392 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

heart of the enemy's country, whose communications 
with the sea-board were soon after cut off by the gueril- 
leros, who swarmed during the whole season on the 
road to Vera Cruz — he determined, nevertheless, to 
surrender not one of the advanta2;es which he had 
gained, but to penetrate still further into the interior. 
Accordingly, General Worth moved forward, in May, 
to Puebla de los Xngelos — the City of the Angels — 
with his division and the volunteer briafade of General 
Quitman, in all but little more than four thousand 
men. On the fourteenth instant, near Amasoque, he 
had a slight skirmish with a body of lancers three 
thousand strong, under Santa Anna ; but he drove 
them before him with ease, and on the fifteenth instant 
entered the city and took formal possession. 

Like Jackson and Harrison, General Scott had no 
sooner evolved his plans, than he found them counter- 
acted by the orders or proceedings of the War Depart- 
ment. The experience, oftentimes the bitter experi- 
ence, of the Revolution and the second war with Great 
Britain, — in which it was over and over again demon- 
strated, that it was essential to success that there should 
be as little interference as possible with the details and 
incidents of a campaign^ — seemed to be forgotten by the 
Executive authorities at Washington. The general 
object of a campaign, or expedition, may, perhaps 
should be, designated by the President, as commander 
in chief of the army ; but it may be unhesitatingly af- 
firmed, that no officer is fit to conduct either, to whom 
a large discretion may not be safely confided. He will 
find cares and vexations enough, without beino; fretted 



MARCH FROM PUEBLA. 393 

by petty annoyances, or thwarted, at every turn, in the 
most ti'i fling circumstance. 

It was a long time before General Scott found him- 
self in sufficient force to warrant him in continuing his 
march upon the Mexican capital. On the twenty- 
second of May, General Twiggs marched from Jalapa 
for Puebla, with his division. General Scott followed 
him on the twenty-third, in company with Mr. Trist, 
the American Commissioner sent to confer with the 
Mexican government, in case negotiations for peace 
should be proposed. Strong garrisons were left at Ja- 
lapa and Perote, under Colonels Childs and Wynkoop. 
At Puebla another tedious delay took place ; but the 
time was wisely and profitably spent in drilling the 
troops. At length, the long-expected reinforcements 
besran to arrive. Generals Pillow and Cadwalader 
reached Puebla on the eighth of July, with over three 
thousand men, including the command of Colonel 
Childs ; and on the sixth of August, General Pierce 
came up with twenty-five hundred men. Both col- 
umns had repeated, and, in every instance, successful 
encounters, with the guerilleros. 

Arrangements had already been made for the con- 
templated movement towards the far-famed halls of the 
IMontezumas. The army, now consisting of ten thou- 
sand seven hundred men, moved forward en echelon ; 
General Twif^i^s marching on the seventh instant with 

DO O 

his division, preceded by the cavalry brigade of Colonel 
Harney, and the remaining divisions, under Generals 
Quitman, Worth, and Pillow, following on successive 
days. General Scott left Puebla in person on the 
eighth instant, and on the same day overtook, and then 

17* 



394 WINFIELD SCOTT, 

continued with, the leading division, under General 
Twiggs. The line of march followed the National 
Road, which ascends gradually through a rich rolling 
country, to the tierra fria, the third of the great ter- 
races into which Mexico is divided. — Elated with past 
victories, and the brilliant promise of future triumphs, 
the serried columns press on, through groves and gar- 
dens decked out in the most gorgeous array, through 
fields of maize and barley, and amidst towering cedars 
and lofty pines : 

" Through rocky pass, o'er wooded steep, 
In long and glittering files they sweep." 

Not an enemy appeared to obstruct their march, 
until, on emerging from the pass of Rio Frio, they 
commenced descending into the valley, in the midst of 
which, like some bright vision of fairy land, lay the 
city of Mexico, whose shining domes and sculptured 
facades were bathed in the rich flood of golden light 
that streamed down through the transparent atmo- 
sphere. On approaching the hacienda of Buena Vista, 
Major Sumner, of the 2nd dragoons, who commanded 
the advanced corps, descried a party of Mexican lan- 
cers apparently drawn up to defend the passage. Dash- 
ing fiercely upon the enemy, without pausing to count 
their numbers, he compelled them to make a hasty re- 
treat. General Twiggs' division halted at Ayotla, fif- 
teen miles from Mexico, on the eleventh of August, 
and as the other divisions came up, they encamped in 
the rear, about the head of Lake Chalco. 

The Mexican capital lies about three miles west of 
Lake Tezcuco, and six miles from the northwest point 
of Lake Xochimilco. It is approached by six principal 



FOIlTIFiCATIONS OF MEXICO. 29-') 

roads, which terminate in massive stone causeways, 
elevated from ten to twenty feet above the low marshy 
grounds that surround the city. On the east, is the 
National Road, along which the American army moved ; 
on the south, the Acapulco road, entering on the San 
Antonio causeway ; on the south-west, the Tacuba3^a 
road and causeway ; on the west, the San Cosme road 
and causeway ; and on the north, are the remaining 
two roads. 

After his repulse at Amasoque, Santa Anna returned 
to the capital, and began diligently to fortify it. The 
National Road, which runs close to the southern shore 
of Lake Tezcuco, was defended by El Peiion, an iso- 
lated hill three hundred feet high, seven miles from the 
city, on the south side of the road ; this was garnished 
with twenty batteries mounting fifty-one guns, and 
fifteen infantry breastworks ; and there was, also, a 
strong battery on the road, or causeway, four hundred 
yards in advance of the height, another by its side, and 
a third about a mile from the gate of San Lazaro. 
Between the National Road and Lake Xochimilco, is a 
lateral road, leading to the San Antonio causeway by 
way of the village of Mexicalcingo, which lies on the 
outlet or canal reaching from the lake to the city. Tiie 
bridge over the outlet was fortified, and flanked by 
strong works, — there being, in all, eight batteries, with 
thirty-eight guns, and one breastwork for infantry. 

On the opposite side of Lake Xochimilco, upon the 
San Antonio causeway, was a tefe du pont of heavy 
mason work, at the bridge over the Churubusco river, 
over two miles south of the city. To the left of the 
bridge, were the church and convent of San Pablo, sur- 



o 



96 WINFIELD SCOTT. 



rounded by a high wall and designed to be used for 
purposes of defence. Between two and three miles 
further south, at San Antonio, there were extensive 
field works, containing seven batteries, mounting twenty- 
four heavy guns, and two infantry breastworks. Five 
miles northwest of the tete dii pont, on the Tacubaya 
causeway, and distant only one and a half miles from 
the Belen garita, or fortified gateway, was- the frown- 
ing fortress of Chapultepec, situated on a rocky em- 
inence in an oblong inclosure, the walls at the foot of 
which, on the north and south, were formed by aque- 
ducts extending into the city, over heavy arches, by the 
Tacubaya and San Cosme causeways, which were thus 
divided into double roadways. On tlie heights of 
Chapultepec, there were seven batteries, including those 
in the main fortification, which mounted nineteen guns, 
and seven infantry breastworks. Beneath this fortress, 
on the west, twelve hundred yards distant from the 
acclivity, was El Molino del Rey — " the IVIill of the 
King" — a long range of stone buildings now occupied 
by the Mexican troops ; and four or five hundred yards 
further to the west, on a retired line, was Casa de Mata, 
an old square building, with thick stone walls, and sur- 
rounded by ditches and bastioned intrenchments. 

In addition to the exterior chain of defences, there 
was an interior line equally formidable, A wide and 
deep navigable canal, extremely diflicult, if not impos- 
sible, to bridge in the face of an active enemy, girded 
the city throughout its greater extent. There were 
eight main entrances, at each of which there was a for- 
tified garita ; and on the left and north of the Tacu- 
baya causeway, a short distance in rear of the garita 



RECONNAISSANCES. 397 

Belen, was the Ciudadela, or citadel, a rectangular 
work, containing fifteen heavy giins. Batteries and re- 
dans were constructed upon and near the causeways 
and garitas, and preparations were made to connect all 
the works of the interior line by a continuous chain of 
redoubts. Guns could not be obtained in sufficient 
quantities to arm all the works, but it was the inten- 
tion of the Mexican commander to withdraw his pieces 
from the outer batteries, whenever it became necessary 
to take up a new position. For the defence of these 
fortifications, and the protection of the city, he had col- 
lected an army of over thirty thousand men, mainly 
consisting of the battalions of the National Guard, but 
all well armed and equipped. 

From his camp at Ayotla, General Scott threw for- 
ward several reconnoitering parties, through whom he 
obtained definite and reliable information in regard to 
the enemy's fortifications. He was able to break through - 
the chain at any point, but his army was weak in num- 
bers, and no reinforcements could be expected for some 
time to come ; consequently, he decided to husband his 
strength, and avoid the more important and stronger 
works at El Peilon and Mexicalcingo, by making a de- 
tour to the left, round Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco. 
He had long had this project in contemplation, and on 
the fourteenth of August, a reconnaissance was made 
in that direction, which demonstrated its entire practi- 
cability. Directions were forthwith given for the col- 
umns to be put in motion. The order of march was 
now reversed ; General Worth leading the van, with 
Colonel Harney's brigade in the advance, and the other 
divisions closely following the movement. ' 



398 



VVINFIELD SCOTT. 



The enemy's light troops and skirmishers were re- 
peatedly encountered while making the circuit of the 
lakes ; the route was found to be low and uneven, some- 
times crossing deep pits and marshes, and at others 
running underneath overhanging scaurs which threat- 
ened to fall down upon the heads of the soldiers ; but 
the tedious march was terminated on the evening of ■ 
the seventeenth of August, by the arrival of General 
Worth at San Augustia, on the Acapulco road, — twen- 
ty-seven miles from Ayotla by this circuitous route, and 
nine miles south of the city of Mexico. In the morn- 
ing of tlie eighteenth, General Worth moved along the 
causeway, towards San Antonio, to allow the other di- 
visions to close on him. 

Reconnaissances having been made by the engineer 
officers, it was found that the fortifications at San Anto- 
nio commanded the causeway and the marshes on their 
left, as far as Lake Xochimilco. West of the road 
there was a vast field of volcanic rocks, called a pedre- 
gal, utterly impassable for cavalry or artillery, and 
nearly so for infantry, which extended some four or 
five miles, to the San Angel road, leading from the fac- 
tory of Magdalena, down the valley of the Churubusco 
river, to the San Antonio causeway. General Scott 
again resolved that the skill of the enemy should avail 
them nothing. His plan — to gain the San Angel road, 
and then move round to the attack of San Antonio in 
rear — was soon formed, and the necessary orders given 
to carry it into effect. A mule ])ath was discovered 
running westward from San Augustin, and connecting 
with the San Angel road, which the engineers reported 
could be made practicable for artillery. On the morn- 



CONTRERAS AND CHERUBUSCO. 399 

ing of the nineteenth instant General Pillow advanced 
to open the path with his division and the corps of sap- 
pers and miners, — the movement being covered by the 
division of General Twiafsrs. 

In the meantime, Santa Anna had moved his forces 
to the southern side of the city. Eight guns were 
planted in battery at the tete du pont ; the defences of 
San Pablo were increased, and seven guns mounted ; 
and General Valencia was thrown forward on the San 
Angel road, with a corps of seven thousand men, and 
twenty-four pieces of artillery, half of which were of 
heavy calibre. In the morning of the eighteenth of 
August, he had been directed to fall back to Coyoacan, 
near San Pablo ; but he proceedad to the Hill of Con- 
treras, situated in a bend of the San Angel road, opposite 
the opening of the mule path leading from San Au- 
gustin, where he intrenched himself and planted his 
guns. 

The working parties under General Pillow encoun- 
tered innumerable difficulties, but they overcame them 
all, with cheerfulness and alacrity ; and at three o'clock 
in the afternoon, he opened a lively and well-directed 
fire from a battery of field pieces, and a mountain 
howitzer battery, which he had planted within nine 
hundred yards of the Hill of Contreras. The fire was 
answered with spirit ; and slugs, shot, and fragments, 
were thrown from the enemy's guns with terrible eflect. 
Meanwhile, Colonel Riley had moved round to the right, 
with his brigade of General Twiggs' division, across 
the field of lava, — officers and men, the latter divested 
of their knapsacks, picking their way on foot, — to attack 
the Mexicans in the rear. Strong detachments of the 



400 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

enemy's infantry, supported by heavy guns, being dis- 
covered moving up the slopes west of the San Angel 
road, General Pillow detached General Cadwalader, 
with his brigade, to the support of Colonel Riley. 
General Smith also crossed the 7?ef/reg"a/, with the 
remaining brigade of General Twiggs' division ; and, 
subsequently. General Scott dispatched Colonel Mor- 
gan, with the fifteenth infantry, and General Shields, 
with his brigade, in the same direction. 

No serious impression being made against the heavier 
metal of the enemy, by the American guns, they ceased 
playing after nightfall. A violent storm of wind and 
rain now came on, which served to heighten the anxiety 
of General Scott and his officers, to learn the situation 
and prospects of the troops who had crossed the pedregal. 
Late at night, when all was uncertainty and gloom, 
Captain Lee, of the engineers, returned from the op- 
posite side of the bed of lava, with the information that 
General Smith, who had taken the command of the 
detachments, numbering altogether about thirty-three 
hundred men, would storm the camp of General Va- 
lencia at sunrise. Shortly after the day broke on the 
twentieth instant, the intrenchments on the hill of Con- 
treras were gallantly carried, as had been promised, 
and the enemy driven from their position with great 
loss. 

General Scott immediately followed the mule path 
to the San Angel road, with the brigades of General 
Pierce and Colonel Harney, and ordered a rapid pursuit 
of the retreating enemy, who were concentrating at 
San Pablo and the tete du pont. At the same time. 
General Worth moved against San Antonio in front, 



ROUT OF THE ENEMY. 401 

with his division ; but the enemy evacuated their works 
on his approach, and retired to the bridge, whither he 
pursued them as rapidly as possible. 

A general action, of more than two hours' duration, 
which was hotly contested on both sides, now took 
place in and about the tete du pont and the defences of 
San Pablo. At length, the fierce onset of General 
Worth compelled the enemy to give way on the right ; 
the whole line soon staggered and broke, and a complete 
rout ensued. At the request of Colonel Harney, the 
way was cleared, and he was permitted to follow the 
retreating columns of the enemy along the San Antonio 
causeway, to the very gates of the city. His squadrons 
dashed through and through the files of Mexican in- 
fantry, smiting terrible blows on every side ; spurring 
in upon the crowding fugitives, they cleft down all who 
refused to surrender ; and up to the very garita, their 
shouts and cheers, their pistol shots and sabre strokes, 
spread terror and alarm. 

In this action, the old war-spirit of General Scott 
was fully aroused. When the clangor of the battle 
was the wildest and the highest, careless and indifferent 
in regard to the exposure of his person, he ventured 
again and again within range of the enemy's guns. 
In the course of the engagement, he received a slight 
wound from a grape-shot, but he entered the church of 
San Pablo soon after it was taken, and was received 
by his brave soldiers with many a glad hurrah. 

This series of bloody contests finally terminated at 
sunset. During the day, the enemy lost four thousand 
men in killed and wounded, and there were over twenty- 
five hundred taken prisoners. Among the prisoners 



402 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

were eight general officers. . Thirty-seven pieces of ar- 
tillery, and large quantities of small arms and amrau- 
nition, standards, pack-mules and horses, were also cap- 
tured. The American loss was far less in proportion, 
yet it was very severe ; there were one hundred and 
thirty-seven killed, eight hundred and seventy-nine 
wounded, and forty missing. 

It is not improbable, that General Scott might have 
forced his way into the city, on the night after this 
action ; but it was far too hazardous an undertaking 
for eight thousand men to enter a hostile town, con- 
taining a population of two hundred thousand souls, 
whose convents and public edifices could be readily 
converted into fortifications, and the azoteas, or flat 
roofs, of whose dwellings, would afibrd a secure shelter 
for thousands upon thousands of sharp-shooters. It was 
not half so well provided for defence, when Guatemo- 
zin, " the last of the Aztecs," resisted for three months 
the utmost efforts of Cortes, though the latter was 
aided by two hundred thousand Tlascalan allies. 

On the night of the twentieth of August, while the 
thunders of the battle were yet echoing among the 
gorges of the Cordilleras, and ere the dark flocks of the 
zojnlote — the voracious vulture of the country — which 
hovered over the ensanguined plain, had descended to 
their unhallowed carnival. General Scott was visited 
by the British Consul, and other foreign residents of 
the Mexican capital, at whose suggestion, in the spirit 
of a magnanimous victor, he addressed a note to Santa 
Anna on the following morning, proposing an armistice 
with a view to negotiation. Previous to this time, on 
the morning of the twenty-first, General Scott was 



THE ARMISTICE. 403 

waited on by General Mora y Villamil, who came out 
to propose a truce ; but the terms not beuig satisfactory, 
nothing was agreed on. Upon the receipt of General 
Scott's note, Santa Anna appointed commissioners to 
confer with such as might be appointed on the other 
side. An armistice was ultimately signed, and ratified 
on the twenty-fourth instant. 

Negotiations were instantly opened ; but the dupli- 
city and bad faith of the Mexican government daily 
became more and more apparent. Infractions of the 
armistice constantly took place ; and on the sixth of 
September General Scott notified Santa Anna, that 
unless full satisfaction was made, before twelve o'clock, 
meridian, on the following day, he should consider it at 
an end from and after that hour. The reply of the 
JMexican President was both insulting and evasive, — 
and General Scott made immediate preparations to re- 
new offensive operations. Having been informed that 
there was a cannon foundry in El Molino del Rey, to 
which a number of bells had been sent from the city to 
be cast into guns — though this afterwards proved to be 
a mistake — and that there was a large deposit of pow- 
der in Casa de Mata, he determined to drive the enemy 
from these works, and to seize the powder and destroy 
the foundry. The performance of this service was 
confided to General Worth, with his division, reinforced 
by the brigade of General Cadwalader and other small 
detachments. It was brilliantly executed on the eighth 
of September, in spite of the opposition of nearly the 
whole Mexican army, but with the loss of near eight 
hundred men killed and wounded, out of thirty-four 
hundred. 



404 WINFIELD SCOTT. 

The capital itself still remained in the possession of 
the enemy, who labored night and day to complete their 
defences. Including the works at the garitas, there 
were forty-seven batteries, designed for one hundred and 
seventy-seven guns, and seventeen infantry breastworks, 
constructed around the city. All the batteries, how- 
ever, could not be manned at the same time, in conse- 
quence of the deficiency in artillery. The most formid- 
able works were at the garita of San Antonio, and on 
the heights of Chapultepec. 

After completing his reconnaissances. General Scott 
made a demonstration before the southern gates of the 
city, with the divisions of Generals Pillow and Quit- 
man, on the afternoon of the eleventh of September, in 
order to deceive the enemy ; but when it became dark, 
he directed those officers to join him with their columns, 
at Tacubuya, whither his headquarters had been some- 
time previous removed. General Twiggs was left at 
Piedad with his division, to threaten, or make false 
attacks, on the batteries near the garita of San An- 
tonio. 

On the twelfth instant, four heavy batteries were plant- 
ed, and opened, on the castle of Chapultepec, less than a 
mile distant from Tacubaya, — while General Twiggs 
directed a vigorous fii"e upon the batteries in the vicinity 
of the southern gates. The cannonade was very effect- 
ive ; the enemy were driven from their outworks on 
the heights of Chapultepec, and the main fortification 
was seriously crippled. On the night of tlie twelfth, 
final arrangements were made for storming the castle 
early on the following morning. Before midday on the 
thirteenth, the works were bravely carried at the point 



CAPTURE OF MEXICO, 405 

of the bayonet, by the divisions of Generals Pillow and 
Quitman, — tlie former being supported by the division 
of General Worth, and the latter by the brigade of 
General Smith. Immediately after the reduction of 
the castle, Generals Worth and Quitman followed the 
retreating masses of the Mexican troops along the San 
Cosme, and Chapultepec, or Tacubaya causeways. The 
latter was the first to gain a foothold in the city ; the 
garita of Belen being carried by his men shortly after 
one o'clock in the afternoon. The route taken by Gen- 
eral Worth was much longer, but he steadily advanced 
on his way, driving the enemy from every redoubt and 
battery ; and, during the evening, he securely estab- 
lished himself inside of the garita of San Cosme. Be- 
tween nine and ten o'clock, a few shells were thrown 
from a mortar brought up to his column, in the direc- 
tion of the National Palace, on the gi'cat plaza, in order 
to obtain the exact distance. 

Santa Anna and his ministers did not think it advisa- 
ble again to encounter the American army, or to bring 
upon the city the horrors of a bombardment. During 
the night of the thirteenth, the Mexican commander 
hastily evacuated the capital with all his forces ; and 
on the morning of the fourteenth of September, Gene- 
ral Scott entered and took possession with his troops, — 
the civil officers making an unconditional surrender of 
the town. For upwards of twenty-four hours, the 
Americans were annoyed by the leperos, and lower 
classes of the populace, who fired, and hurled missiles 
upon them, from the roofs and windows. The vigilant 
measures of General Scott speedily checked the emeute, 



406 WINFIELl) SCOTT. 

and the American flag waved undisturbed over the Pal- 
acio of Mexico.* 

A rigid system of police was at once established and 
enforced by the American commander, — whose watch- 
ful care for the comfort and welfare of his men, whose 
regard for the rights of the citizens, and whose respect 
for his vanquished opponents, manifested at all times 
and on all occasions, won golden opinions from both 
friends and foes. 

The brilliant campaign of General Scott, — especially 
remarkable for the wonderful display of his military 
knowledge and ability, his rapidity of decision, the 
power and compass of his mind, the clearness of his 
plans, and the strategical skill which so often rendered 
all the labors of the enemy completely nugatory, — ter- 
minated with the fall of the Mexican capital. Large 
reinforcements were sent to join him, by the aid of 
which his communications with the seacoast were ef- 
fectually opened. For a few weeks, Santa Anna, who 
had resigned his office of provisional president, attempted 
to continue the war, but he eventually abandoned the 
contest and quitted the country. The new adminis- 
tration exhibited a more friendly and pacific disposition ; 
the negotiations were resumed, and on the second day 
of February, 1848, a treaty of peace was signed at 

* The casualties consequent upon the capture of Chapultepec and the 
retluction of the city, on the side of the Mexicans, were 1,000 killed, 
1,500 wounded, and 823 taken prisoners. The Americans lost 130 killed, 
704 wounded, and 29 missing. Among the captures of the latter, were 
100 pieces of artillery, a number of colors and standards, and small 
arms and ammunition in sufficient quantities to supply an army during 
u campaign. - RD " 94 I 



RETURN TO THE UNITED STATES. 407 

Guadalupe Hidalgo, which was subsequently duly 
ratified. 

On the nineteenth of February, General Scott was 
relieved from duty in Mexico, at his own request ; and 
shortly thereafter he returned to the United States, 
where he was received with the most flattering de- 
monstrations of respect. The thanks of Congress and 
a gold medal were voted to him. Resolutions of con- 
gratulation were adopted by a number of State Legis- 
latures, and in the city of New York and other towns, 
public processions and festivities were had, in honor of 
the gallant commander and successful soldier. 

The athletic frame and robust constitution of Gen- 
eral Scott indicate that his life may be prolonged for 
many years. While he is still living, and occupying 
so high a place in the estimation of his countrymen, it 
would, perhaps, be as unwise, as it is unnecessary, to 
speak of his character more in detail. It may be, that 
he is reserved for other and higher honors, — ^but what- 
ever fortune befal him, it will ever be a proud satisfac- 
tion to his friends, to point to his triumphant march to 
the Mexican capital, as the most splendid achievement 
recorded in modern history. 



THE END. 



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